


How Many Letters Are In Goodbye?

by geeisajacketslut, romanticizingchemicals



Category: Bandom, Electric Century, Fall Out Boy, Gerard Way and the Hormones, LeATHERMØUTH, My Chemical Romance, frnkiero andthe cellabration
Genre: Angst, Book Club, Danger Days Gerard, Fluff, Frerard, Library, Library AU, Like a character gets stabbed-but not in explicit detail like 0 details, M/M, MCR doesn't exist, Marriage Proposal, Meeting for the first time, Mentions of Mental Illness, Mentions of Suicide, Smut, Stabbing, Stalker Alex, Top!Frank, Tumblr Prompt, Wisdom Teeth, artist, bottom!Gerard, petekey, revenge Frank
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-24
Updated: 2016-06-06
Packaged: 2018-06-04 07:17:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 49,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6647773
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/geeisajacketslut/pseuds/geeisajacketslut, https://archiveofourown.org/users/romanticizingchemicals/pseuds/romanticizingchemicals
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Schedules were something crucial to Gerard. He liked following a schedule at home, at work, and even his schedule for his weekly library trips. He knew that if he had a game plan, nothing could get messed up. </p><p>Basically, Gerard is a schedule whore and Frank has a lip ring and Mikey wants to marry someone after dating that person for a week.</p><p>~<br/>"I found your number in a library book" AU<br/>~<br/>Title: How Many Letters Are In Goodbye (book)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Gerard Way, the Schedule Hoe and Grey's Anatomy Addict

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> pls leave suggestions in the comments bc i rely so so so heavily on prompts
> 
> edit 1/30/17 omg major throwback guys this starts out rly cheesy n bad but i promise you it actually gets rly good so keep readin!!

Schedules were something crucial to Gerard. He liked following a schedule at home, at work, and even his schedule for his weekly library trips. He knew that if he had a game plan, nothing could get messed up. Boys were not included in schedules sadly.

Sundays were Gerard’s favorite day. It was his day off from work, and his only day to be able to go to the library for hours uninterrupted. Every Sunday after he woke up, he would get dressed, walk to Starbucks, and walk to the library. 

Gerard woke up late. The night before, he’d been on the phone with Mikey for hours and hours listening to him talk about his new boyfriend Pete, and how Pete’s in a band, and how Pete plays bass JUST LIKE HIM, and how Pete has all these cool rocker friends. Pete this, Pete that, Gerard barely listened. He was watching Quantico and had left Mikey on speakerphone. Mikey was always going from guy to guy or girl to girl etc; Gerard had lost track of who Mikey was dating 99% of the time because it never really lasted beyond a month or two. 

~

“Gerard! Are you listening?” Mikey yelled.

“Yeah, yeah, don’t worry, you were telling me about Pete.” Gerard took a wild guess, and he was correct. Shocker. 

“Pete might be the one, Gerard! Should I propose next week? He’s taking me to see a live performance of a new band he likes!” Mikey said excitedly over the phone.

“Mikey, you met him last week. What would Mom say?” Gerard responded.

“Good point. I’ll wait a little bit. Thanks Gee!” And with that, Mikey hung up the phone. Probably to call Pete. Gerard guessed Pete probably didn’t sleep well, considering the fact that Mikey usually called him at 3am.

~

Gerard got out of bed with a groan. He walked around his room and stared at the mess of clothes and comic books. He stepped on one and winced, praying he hadn’t ruined it. He threw on a (probably dirty) Iron Maiden shirt, some black jeans that were hopefully washed in the last couple weeks. He laced up his black converse, grabbed his bag, wallet, and last weeks’ books, and was on his way.

In his small town, he was known as the guy always seen “walking down the street with his big bag and coffee”. The one who said hello to the homeless people, and if he had time, stayed and chatted. On Sundays, no one is in a rush. He walked by the same street vendors, hollered a “hello!”, and continued his one mile walk to one of the only libraries in Belleville. 

He got there at 12pm, staying on schedule. 

“Hi Lindsey!” Gerard said as he walked through the doors. He smiled at the receptionist, Lindsey. He briefly dated her in high school before he realized he was a flaming homosexual. They were friends and they hung out sometimes. Every Sunday he would see her, say hello, return his books, pick out new ones, and say goodbye. Once again, relying on schedules.

“Hey Gee, how are you today?” Gerard handed her his library card and last weeks’ books to return. 

“I’m good, I’m procrastinating all of my work at the moment, so I’m just hoping that the crippling anxiety doesn’t get me away from my reading.”

“I just finished a new book called How Many Letters Are In Goodbye and I think you’d like it.” She handed Gerard back his card. 

“I’ll check it out, thanks Lynz!” Gerard walked away and wandered into the “Young Adults” section of the library. 

The second he walked into the room, he saw the book on the “April Recommendations!” shelf, which surprisingly WASN’T updated monthly. More like, every 4 months or whenever the librarians felt the urge to change it.

He picked up the book, the cover made it appear to be /that/ book that the teacher made everyone read it school. For a new book, it wasn’t in pristine condition. The cover was kind of torn and as he flipped through the book, he saw little highlighted passages and annotations in red pen. There were random doodles on some of the pages, and little “OMG!” notes beside some parts.

“Goddamnit get your own copy if you’re gonna fuck up a public one.” Gerard kept the book anyway. He wasn’t one to judge a book by its cover.

He sat down in one of the small chairs close to the back of the library. He opened his bag and pulled put his iPod. He turned on The Smiths and began reading.

Gerard was the kind of person to cry over small things, example: books. After reading even a little bit of the book, he started tearing up.

“Fuck, Rhea, oh my god.” He whispered to himself.

“Oh my god you better not.”

“What the fuck o m g."

Gerard picked out 4 books that day:  
1\. How Many Letters Are In Goodbye  
2\. Uglies  
3\. The Great Gatsby (he had never read it)  
4\. The Fault In Our Stars (lets be real, Gerard loved YA novels way too much. They were nice and chill)

Gerard worked on reading How Many Letters Are In Goodbye for a couple more hours, then decided it was getting late. It was 6’o clock and it was his night to cook dinner for Ray, his roommate, and himself. He picked up his books and turned off his music. He was still holding How Many Letters Are In Goodbye while walking to the checkout. 

He was walking while zoning out about what he was gonna make for dinner when he bumped into someone super cute. He was super short and he had hair with shaved sides that were bleached. In the middle, his hair was kind of a mohawk that had given up on itself. It fell into the boys’ eyes. The short guy pushed his hair out of his eyes and smiled. His eyes were hazel and they sparked under the cheap tungsten lights in the hallway. He was wearing a Black Flag shirt and it made Gerard’s heart nearly stop. 

“Sorry! By the way, nice book!” Said the shorter man. Gerard could’ve sworn the short guy had winked at him before he walked off in the other direction. Gerard wanted to run back and get him/marry him. Gerard just stood there unable to speak.

"diD THE CUTE BOY WINK AT ME????" Gerard panicked as he thought to himself. "AGH I SHOULD’VE STAYED AND TALKED TO HIM time to c r y"

Finally, he composed himself and continued walking to the checkout station.

“Hey Lindsey, these 4 please.” Gerard placed the stack on the counter. He got his bag ready.

“Pfffft The Fault In Our Stars? What are you? 12?” Lindsey laughed as she scanned his books. 

“I enjoy fine literature like The Fault In Our Stars I am so, so, sorry you do not have good taste in books like me.” Gerard said as he spoke in a posh voice. He started cracking up halfway through though.

“Amazing acting skills. By the way, I saw a guy earlier with a Black Flag shirt. I wanted to stop him and give him your phone number. I think he had to go study though.” Lindsey spoke while finishing scanning the last book. She placed them in his bag for him.

“I saw him too! He bumped into me! I wanted to give him my number too oh my god Lindsey you should have he could be my soulmate he might die tomorrow and i’ll never get to meet him and talk to him and damnnn did you see his lip ring agh my h e a r t.” Gerard spoke super fast until he ran out of breath.

“Slow down. If you had let me finish, I would’ve told you that he comes here on Sundays and Thursdays. On Thursdays we have book club, remember?” Lindsey pointed to the sign behind her that said “COLLEGE BOOK CLUB! JOIN TODAY FREE OF CHARGE. BRING YOUR OWN BOOK!”

“But Lynzzzzz, Thursday is Grey’s Anatomy night.” She rolled her eyes. Gerard whined as he flipped through his schedule. He glanced at the poster, then at his schedule.

“There’s such thing as DVR, I know you have one.” Lindsey smirked.

“But then I can’t tweet people and we can’t rant during the episode!” Gerard and his fucking Twitter addiction. 

“Ugh. I thought you hate needles, why do you watch a show about hospitals?” She questioned. 

“I close my eyes 99% of the episode. I watch for the l o v e and a n g s t.” He spelled out the letters, over-annuciating all of them to make a point. 

“It’s for love, Gerard, like you said, he could die soon.” Lindsey gave him a look. 

"What day is the next meeting?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THX 4 READING
> 
> (STALK) FOLLOW ME  
> Tumblr: @Queen-of-the-otps  
> Wattpad: @Bethegerardtomyfrank


	2. The One Where Gerard Is Obsessed With Schedules and Hates Having To Change Them

Gerard poured the last of the spaghetti sauce onto Ray's dish, and then held his breath as he tried to balance the two plates on one arm. "R-Ray!" he called somewhere into the apartment, voice shaking, much like the plates. "Dinner! Come get it! Now!" 

 

Threatening to fall over any second, the plates and pan seemed to jeer at him, which made him unusually nervous. Before anything could take a turn for the worst, Gerard quickly slid the pan into the sink and took one plate into each hand with a relieved sigh. Ray came bounding into the small kitchen, hair bobbing and eyes full of hunger. "Thank God," he cried, snatching one of the plates from Gerard and returning back to wherever he had cooped himself up in this time. 

 

Gerard smiled at his best friend's excitement over his cooking, and then took his own plate to his room in order to do some drawing. He hadn't drawn in several days, since he simply couldn't fit the activity into his detailed schedules. It's not his fault that he has to work a job, and then cook, and then go to the library, or go shopping, or go for a walk, or exercise, or eat, or even watch his favorite television programs. Art just wasn't as important anymore, though he wanted to try a hand at it once more.

 

Once Gerard reached his room, he carefully set down the steaming dinner on his desk and looked around his small room. He took a moment to appreciate the quality and size of the apartment he shared with Ray, because it wasn't cheap. Many night shifts between the two was still barely enough to afford rent, which meant that the apartment was mostly uninhabited anyways. Since Ray and Gerard worked so often, and Gerard had a full schedule every damn day, he couldn't fit in much time for relaxation. 

 

Gerard sat down at his modest desk, wiping down dust that had accumulated there over the past few days. He coughed a bit, and then brought his spaghetti closer to him, stabbing at the meal with an unusually cold fork. For once, he was left alone with his thoughts. With about two hours of free time in which he had no idea how to spend. He enjoyed staying busy, of course, as it kept his mind off of other things. For one, if he was busy working or reading a good book, he wouldn't think about his awful anxiety or the bills he had to pay. When he was busy, his brain was entertaining other notions. And that was a good thing. However, as he sat and stared blankly at his supper, he found himself lost. 

 

Unfortunately, none of his television programs were on. Grey's Anatomy would come on on Thursday, he noted, so he would have to record the show in advance in order to watch it. He sighed in frustration, realizing that he would have to work that into Friday's schedule. However, that reminded him that he didn't have two hours of free time, because Sunday nights were the nights in which he would create his planner for the week. 

 

Joyfully, Gerard opened his large tote, which he carried around with him everywhere. He prided himself on its diligent organization, and often talked about how everything was always in its place. So clean. So comfortable.

 

He withdrew the planner from its small side compartment inside of the bag, savoring the black of its bind and its perfect condition. Carefully, he pushed the spaghetti away and set the book on his desk, opening it and turning to the next blank week calendar. Almost joyfully, he took a pen from the cup on his desk and scratched away his plans for next week, making sure to include the book club meeting and the new addition of Grey's Anatomy on Friday. Once all of the details of the coming week were copied down into this sacred text, Gerard nodded at his work and closed the book, placing it back into its pocket and closing his bag.

 

According to the clock, he had spent about twenty minutes constructing a detailed schedule, which meant that he still had over an hour with nothing to do. Only then did he remember his dinner, and quickly wolfed it down before returning the dish back to the kitchen sink. Since there were dirty dishes in the sink, he decided to spend some time tidying up the kitchen. That meant reorganizing the pantry, the cabinets, the fridge, and loading the dish washer. He would also clean off the counters, he decided, and the set about cleaning. 

 

He quickly laced up his red apron, and then washed off the few dishes piled by the sink. The dishes were only from dinner, but Gerard still hated to see too many plates and cups pile up if he didn't clean them in a reasonable amount of time. After putting the dishes away, he rearranged the pantry, placing the breakfast items on one shelf, snacks on another, and the other supplies on the last. Turning to the fridge, Gerard made sure that food was easily accessible, and then nodded at his work so far. 

 

The only problem about living with Ray was that Ray was a pig. He never cleaned up after himself and left a path of destruction wherever he wandered. Gerard decided that it was a good thing that Ray was always busy with work and his new "band", if he could even call it that. 

 

After spraying the counters and oven and fridge and microwave with chemicals and scrubbing them off, Gerard took out the trash and then retreated back to his room. Surprisingly, that had taken him nearly an hour. As he scowled at the clock, he blamed it on the milk stain that Ray had left on one of the cabinet doors. Now that time was winding down and it was nearly time for him to prepare for bed, Gerard hesitantly removed his sketchbook from one of the desk drawers and sat it down on in front of him. 

 

It seemed to whine at him, complaining about how it was "old" and "abandoned" and "upset". However, Gerard just ignored this and flipped through the pages to a blank one, grabbing a pencil from the cup and poising it over the paper. Skimming his mind for ideas and prompts on what to draw, he couldn't help but think of that boy. That boy with the Black Flag shirt. That incredibly cute, abnormally short, musically-learned boy that had ran into him at the library. At the memory, Gerard blushed for no reason, and then groaned to himself at the prospect of attending the book club on Thursday. It'd be two hours of just talking about books. Talking. People.

 

Gerard shook his head has he felt his heart rate increase, refusing to let his fear of people get in the way of meeting someone he seemed to be drawn to. No. He wouldn't let that happen.

 

That in mind, Gerard took to drawing the boy from memory, attempting to convey the innocence and beauty into a drawn image. It seemed impossible, but Gerard managed to draw a person that vaguely resembled the boy. He had captured the shape, as that was easy enough, and translated the eyes into that of a cartoon character, and then had carefully spiked up the boy's hair as to resemble the person he was trying to draw. The side were shaved, his shirt was wrinkly, and his eyes were shining. Gerard's conscience scolded him for falling for someone he didn't even know, but he pushed away the thoughts and took out his drawing markers.

 

He loved that they were able to blend, as he would be doing a shit ton of blending in this picture if he wanted to capture the realism-turned-cartoon personality of the mysterious boy. 

 

After twenty minutes of coloring and shading (yes, Gerard was keeping a careful eye on the clock), the drawing was complete. The eyes could have been brighter, the hair more blown-away, the smile and lip ring more realistic, but Gerard had to admit that he was actually a bit proud of this. According to his memory, the drawing was pretty spot-on. 

 

Gerard nodded one last time, and then signed it at the bottom corner, closing the book and cleaning up the space before setting off to shower and prepare himself for bed. 

 

He could usually complete all of these tasks in under ten minutes, and tonight was no exception. In fact, he was eager to get to sleep. He would be able to continue his working schedule throughout the week, nothing altered except for Thursday and Friday. As he began to drift into sleep that night, he realized that this was pretty much the only new thing to happen to him for a while. 

 

And that was perfectly fine with him. 

 

~

 

"Umm, where is everyone?" Gerard asked Lindsey suspiciously, assuming that maybe his schedule was off or he had remembered the day incorrectly. He didn't want to acknowledge the two other people sitting around the large wooden table, or that there was a stack of notebooks and snacks at the center of it. All he cared about was the fact that the boy (who, Lindsey had informed Gerard, was named Frank) wasn't there yet. He scowled at Lindsey as she glanced quickly at the door, and then Gerard began to think that she had lied to him just to get him to come to her stupid book club. 

 

Lindsey rolled her eyes, as though reading Gerard's mind. "No, you idiot. He's coming. I asked him, and he told me he was going to come. I saw him earlier today at Starbucks before I came here..." she told him irritably, and then turned around to face the table again. She coughed a little in order to get the attention of the other two. 

 

One of them was talking away feverishly on their phone, a copy of the text they were reading laid out in front of them. As soon as Lindsey coughed, the person ceased their talking, and then set the phone away in their bag, apologizing loudly. Gerard was quite surprised by the volume of their voice, and jumped a little bit. Lindsey didn't miss this action, and placed a delicate hand on Gerard's arm, giving him a reassuring nod. When Gerard nodded back at her, she turned back to the other two and opened her mouth to begin the meeting.

 

Just then, there was a bell at the door as someone rushed in, panting and soaking wet from the rain. Gerard was only vaguely irritated by the rain, as it threw him two minutes off of his schedule. However, his rain boots and umbrella did help significantly as he trudged through the poor weather to the library. 

 

Both Lindsey and Gerard turned around to look at the newcomer, who, to Gerard's great pleasure, appeared to be none other than Frank. 

 

"Frank, great if you to finally join us," Lindsey teased lightly, gesturing to the table. Gerard expected Frank to sit somewhere other than next to him, yet he was incorrect. Frank slumped into the chair next to Gerard, offering him a quick smile, as he took out his book and set it down loudly on the table.

 

Gerard returned the smile without hesitation, and convinced himself that he was going to talk to Frank somehow. 

 

Lindsey carried on without skipping a beat, informing Gerard that they had only just begun the book. It turned out that the book just happened to be the one that Gerard had checked out: _How Many Letters Are In Goodbye?_ No wonder Lindsey had told him to check it out. 

 

Gerard just nodded as the group discussed the happenings of the first chapter, trying not to spoil anything for Gerard. 

 

However, Gerard informed them that it'd be okay, and that they didn't have to hold out on the explanation just because of him. Besides, he had finished a pretty large portion of the book on Sunday and throughout the week. "Gee, the point of Book Club isn't to read it and then discuss. You have to read the book _with_ everyone else. I'll up the amount of chapters for each week, but still..." Lindsey informed Gerard, and she rolled her eyes when Gerard stuck out his tongue at her. However, the action did earn a giggle from Frank, so Gerard kept up his antics to the best of his abilities. 

 

After the meeting was over, Lindsey asked the group to read five chapters, and to keep a mental log of what's going on. The group agreed and dispatched, everyone taking their own books along with them. Gerard stayed back and chatted with Lindsey, asking her about what she thought he should do about Frank. Gerard hadn't gotten the chance to talk to him, because Frank said that he had a job to go work at the music store a bit down the road, and then took off.

 

"Well, Gerard, I don't know what to tell you. If you aren't gonna grow the balls to talk to him, you won't get anywhere with him," Lindsey told him seriously, setting a book on a shelf and walking back to the counter. Gerard grunted at her angrily, and shook his head. She didn't get it; he couldn't just _talk_ to people. It didn't work like that. 

 

He decided that he would just pick up some Chinese food for him and Ray, as it was once again his turn to make dinner once again. He was walking down the sidewalk and towards the restaurant, when suddenly, it seemed as though a bench jumped out and tripped him. After muttering a line of chosen swears and receiving many dirty looks from commuters, he collected his fallen belongings from the damp sidewalk.

 

As he went to pick up his book, which was laying face-down in the water, he noticed a small piece of paper that had fallen out of from the pages. He fathered his possessions and picked up the piece of paper, skimming over it. His heart stopped, and so did his actions; he stopped breathing, stopped walking, and really, stopped thinking.

 

It was Frank's phone number.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm loving this work! Great prompt. Bella and I are prompt-whores...
> 
> And if we're doing the social media thing, follow my tumblr if you want (cookies-and-gee)
> 
> Much love! 
> 
> xoromanticizingchemicals


	3. Frank Iero Is A "Bad Boy"

Gerard gasped. His book was destroyed. Fuck. He had to remember to get a new copy before next week. He opened his back and pulled out his schedule. He wrote “Pick up new book” underneath the category for Sunday. He shoved the wet book in his bag (which was a very bad idea) and picked up the peace of paper that had fallen out and examined it. It was written on a ripped out notebook paper, folded many times. Frank’s handwriting looked rushed. The “T” was huge and the line was long. 

"Dear whoever is reading this, you finished a very cool book, nobody has read this goddamn book so once you finished it please text me I want to rant about this goddamn book that destroyed me. Text me (xxx)-xxx-xxxx ~Frank” 

He is that lucky person. Oh my god. He had Frank’s number. Was it real? Was it the same Frank that sat next to him at book club?

Gerard whipped his phone out of his pocket in record time. It was at 90% because the only people that texted him were Mikey, his mom, and occasionally Ray. Other than that, his phone was a barren desert. 

He opened a new message and started typing:  
Hi! I’m Gerard, I got your note. I promise I’m not creepy or anything, but do you wanna meet up and discuss the book?

Bad, bad, idea. He backspaced the whole text and decided to call Lindsey. 

“LYNZ!” Gerard yelled when she picked up the phone.

“I swear to god, Gee, if you’re somewhere half dead I’m not coming out to get you I am already in my pjs.

“I GOT FRANK’S NUMBER OH MY GOSH!” He screamed. A couple of heads turned his way and he was reminded that he was in fact, outside. Feeling very self conscious, he lowered his voice.

“I got his number!” He whisper-yelled.

“You finally got the confidence to ask?” She said, with way too much excitement. 

“No,” he tried to explain, “it was sort of…in the book.” His voice trailed off.

“What?” Lindsey said, more confused than ever. 

“So you know how like that’s a new book? That no one’s read?” He waited for her to make that connection.

“Yeah, what does that haf’ta do with anything?” 

“He left his number in the book, he wanted to rant to someone about it.” 

“Oooh, you went for a dangerous man.” Lindsey was probably winking, too bad this was a phone call

“Lindseyyyyy what do I do?” Gerard sounded like a 16yr old girl who had a crush on a bad boy. 

“Call him!” 

“I can’t call him! Lindsey I can barely call you.” Gerard 

“So what are you gonna do?” 

“Text him.” 

“So text him. Be yourself. Gotta go, good luck!” And with that, she hung up. Gerard shoved the piece of paper in his coat pocket, which was littered with random crap like markers and gum, and walked to the Chinese restaurant.  
~

On the way home, Gerard called Mikey and told him all about his situation. After all, Mikey ranted to him about everyone HE ever dated. 

In the end, Mikey told him to “man up and call this dude” and then hung up because “Pete is cooking dinner”. 

~

Gerard walked through the door with a bag of Chinese takeout in his arm. He placed it on the table, took out some plates and utensils, and waited for Ray to show up.

“Thanks, Gerard!” He yelled as he walked back to his “cave” or wherever he hides. 

“Sure, no problem.” His voice trailed off, it was likely that Ray didn’t care.

It was cold in the tiny apartment. They had been struggling with rent that month and their heat got shut off. Gerard’s hands went into his coat pockets for warmth, and he felt the piece of paper with Frank’s note.

“What an idiot, putting his phone number in a book.” Gerard slapped his hand over his mouth, realizing what he had said. Did he really just say that?

“Gerard! Why would you call him an idiot! This was F A T E, stop tampering with it.” Gerard didn’t realize he was speaking out loud to himself until Ray walked in and gave him a “What-the-fuck-are-you-doing" kind of look. He quickly shut up and brought the food into his room. He placed the food down on his bed. He looked at the phone number in his hand, then at his sketchbook. He put the number on his shelf by his bed, and took out his sketchbook.

He flipped though the pages until he found the one he had been working on, the one of Frank. He continued sketching, putting explicit detail into all of it. His brain had absorbed all of Frank’s features, even the smallest ones. The way Frank's hands were calloused and gripped the book tightly. The way he cleared his throat before he spoke, and pushed the hair out of his eyes constantly. The way he tried to sit up in his seat when sitting next to taller people (ex. Gerard). The way his eyes became squinty when he laughed. The way he smiled at Gerard when he sat down. Gerard took all of it into account, and put it into his work.

His sketchbook was practically glowing. After a long stage of abandonment, he finally had produced something spectacular. He took a picture of it on his phone, and sent it to Mikey and his mom.

He got an immediate text back from his mom saying “beautiful, come visit this weekend? Mikey and Pete are coming over”. 

Mikey hadn’t responded, probably making out with Pete.

Gerard walked into the kitchen to put away his plate. Ray just left his on the table. Gerard groaned and put them both in the sink. He went and grabbed his gloves and the dish soap and was ready to start cleaning when all of a sudden, his phone started ringing from his room.

Gerard ran to the room to catch his phone before the call was dropped. 

“Hello!” He answered the phone, fully out of breath. While still holding the phone, he grabbed his backpack, pulled out his schedule, and on Saturday, he wrote down “Go to Mom’s; run on treadmill”. He shut it and placed it on his shelf with the phone number.

“Why the fuck are you drawing pictures of my friend?” Mikey said in a calm tone. Not even angry. Just with his regular monotone voice. 

“What?” Gerard said, 100% confused. 

“Why are you drawing pictures of my best friend?”

“Best friend? You know Frank?"


	4. Mikey Never Listens to a Goddamn Thing Gerard Says

Gerard was extremely mind-blown and astounded at this newfound discovery. _Mikey_ knew _Frank_? 

 

And not to mention their friendship status. Best friends? Of course Gerard was jealous as fuck, because not only could he be a real schedule whore, but he was also a jealous prick at times. Especially when crushes were involved. And it wasn't like he had had many crushes before, simply because he didn't have the time for silly teenage crushes.

 

"Okay, wait, you know _Frank_?" Gerard replied, breathless. Suddenly, he had found a new interest in his overly romantic brother. His brother who always had a love interest and never stopped talking about his many boyfriends and, on occasion, girlfriends. And now, his brother who just so happened to be dating Gerard's long-lost, but now found, soulmate. What? A guy can have expectations! 

 

Mikey rolled his eyes for the twentieth time this video chat (since Gerard was so fucking excited that he decided to hang up a regular call and transfer the conversation to a video chat) and scratched his nose. "I said that three times, Gee," he replied irritably, grunting at his older brother's anticipation. "You're acting like you're sixteen and you have some huge crush on a jock."

 

"Oh, judging by that pudge, Frank is no jock," Gerard immediately replied, gasping at his own eagerness. Was he really so desperate as to pay attention to the fact that whenever Frank would stretch or life his arms, his shirt would lift a bit to reveal the slightest bit of excess fat rolling over the sides of his jeans? Mikey's eyes widened and he covered his ears dramatically, and then cried, " _THIS IS MY BEST FRIEND WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, NOT A FUCKING PORN STAR GEE!_ "

 

Gerard giggled quietly and rolled his eyes at his seemingly innocent sibling, who removed his hands from his face to pick the phone back up. "Let me see this drawing, though, and tell me how you guys met. It's a small-ass world," Mikey requested, and he removed his glasses to wipe them on his shirt. With a sudden energy, Gerard picked up his sketch pad from the desk and shoved it at the screen, moving it in and out like a complete dork, and started humming "Imperial March". Mikey giggled and said, "Stop being such a nerd, oh my Lord... I can't see it, stop moving it! Gee, really!" 

 

A laughing mess, Gerard relented and balanced the book, displaying his drawing. For once, he noted, it didn't look half bad. Many of his previous drawings had been torn from the book, ripped to bits or thrown away. Usually, Gerard would immediately regret these actions and attempt to salvage the destroyed art. But, for once, he was a little bit... _proud_... of his work.

 

Mikey focused on the drawing and studied it for a few minutes, and the seconds drew out and made Gerard unreasonably self-conscious. "Do... Do you like it? Is it okay?" he asked after being unable to contain the question any longer, and Mikey laughed. "Dude, this is fucking amazing! I have no idea how you draw this stuff... It's so great. You're a professional, Gerard. Look at the eyes. Look at his hair, damnit... Eyebrows on point," he exclaimed, pointing at the picture as he listed the glories of it. 

 

Gerard let a sigh of relief escape his mouth, and chuckled at his brother's approval. He then told Mikey everything that had happened, from Sunday to Thursday. He didn't miss a beat in his explanation, describing everything from Lindsey to the book club thing to Chinese take-out. And in return, Mikey listened with apparent interest, still mesmerized by the drawing. And when Gerard had finished his detailed explanation, breathless and smiling, Mikey took that chance to explain his history with Frank.

 

"We've known each other since high school. Since you moved out pretty early, you never met Frank. Dude, I've told you about him before. He was the super gay one I was always trying to hook you up with, but you always said that... what was it... 'I have no time for petty love interests and stupid romances'. That's right," Mikey explained, accusing Gerard at some points of being problematic, to which Gerard replied, "Me? Problematic? _Never!_ " Mikey chuckled at the sarcasm and ruffled his hair, letting the silence that followed consume him.

 

After a while, Gerard realized exactly what Mikey had said, and he perked up. "Wait, he's _gay_?" he cried out enthusiastically, to which Mikey nodded. "Yep. Super gay. And totally into your music and love of horror and gore," he teased, smiling for once. Gerard pointed out the out-of-habit gesture, and Mikey replaced the smile with a forced frown. "Oh, whatever," Mikey grumbled as Gerard began to laugh, and he sighed. "Well, I guess I give you my blessing. You said that you found his number? And you never texted him? Did he text you back yet? Wait, you already told me about this whole situation, didn't you? When you were walking back home?" he asked, and Gerard rolled his eyes.

 

"You would know if you had listened, you shit," Gerard muttered, moving his hair from his face to behind his ear. Mikey scoffed and crossed one arm over his chest. "Well, I was thinking about what me and Pete did last night in bed. I was a bit distracted!" he informed Gerard defensively, and Gerard squealed and turned a bright shade of pink. "Stop, enough! No!" Gerard scolded, and then rushed his farewells before Mikey could describe anything further. He hung up the video chat and looked back at his picture, nodding once more. He could do this. Maybe he would regret it, but he couldn't keep sneaking creepy pictures of Frank and engraving him into his memory for later purposes. 

 

He needed to text him. Now.

 

With a shaky hand and a deep breath, Gerard picked up his phone and pulled the piece of paper out from his pocket, plugging the number into his contacts and adding Frank as a new friend. Friend, ha. They had never even had a normal fucking conversation. Gerard looked at his clock, and, greatly dismayed, realized that he had gone way over his schedule talking to Mikey. But now that he was determined to get at least a short text to Frank, he didn't even care. He was breaking the "Laws of Gee", which clearly stated that no matter what, the goddamn schedules _would_ be followed. 

 

Before he could even gain any control over what he was doing, Gerard was typing away a new message: _Hi Frank! I'm Gerard Way, from that college book club thing that Lindsey has going on... Umm, I found your number in a library book, and it said you wanted to rant about the book. I haven't actually finished it yet, but I'd like to know how it makes one feel. I'm anti-feels... Feels and fandoms ruined me so much. Umm, I hope this doesn't sound creepy, but I'd love to rant about whatever shit is in this book we're reading for Book Club? Maybe? Please respond when you get the chance! XoG_

 

And then he was sending it.

 

And then he was getting dressed into his pajamas and preparing himself for bed, all while regretting his entire existence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so happy for Mikey and Kristin! Congrats guys. Well, they're not reading this shit, so I'm talking to their relative direction.
> 
> YEP. THIS IS MY LIFE. 
> 
> TIME TO READ FRERARD AND PETEKEY SHIT AND DIE! TOODLES!
> 
> xoromanticizingchemicals


	5. The Whole Way Family Gives Good Dating Advice

For the first time in years, Gerard purposely woke up early. He had been weighing his pros and cons of getting up before 12pm, and eventually gave in to waking up early. He had dreamt all night about Frank and woke up immediately wanting to see if he replied. He rose up out of bed, put his feet in his slippers, slipped on his robe, and walked into the kitchen (where he charged his phone). Ray had fallen asleep on the coach in their very tiny living room, wrapped up his comforter in an attempt to stay warm in the freezer they called a house. His guitar was abandoned on the floor, near a pile of papers and guitar picks. It was a mess. He walked back into his room and picked up his schedule off his desk writing: Saturday-MAKE Ray clean living room up. 

 

Gerard turned on the coffeemaker and began to brew some coffee. He sat down at the kitchen table, struggling to keep his eyes open.He knew he wouldn’t trust himself interacting with anyone (even over text) without any caffeine in his system. He was wondering why he even decided to wake up early when he heard the familiar sounds of coffee hitting the bottom of his mug and his mood brightened. He got up from the table, walked over to the coffee machine, and began prepping his coffee for consumption. He walked back to the table and set down his coffee. It made a loud sound against the wooden table, and Gerard heard Ray stirring in his sleep.

 

_Is caffeine a drug?_ Gerard thought to himself while sipping it. He turned on his phone and scrolled through his notifications. He had a total of three. Three notifications. 

 

Neko Atsume: Check back in and feed your cats!

NEW MESSAGE: Frank Iero (2)

 

He saw the familiar name and nearly choked on his coffee. Two whole messages already? He quickly unlocked his phone and opened them. 

 

 

_"Hi Gerard, in case you don’t already know, I’m Frank. Wow, why did I say that. Anyways, OH MY GOD I need someone to rant to about Rhea being so selfish and just ughh everything about her was “ME ME ME” and omg do u like Laurie I’ve got like female-fuckboy vibes about her like she broke Rhea wtf Laurie and agh just all of this. XoxoFrnk"_

 

_+_

 

_"Do you wanna possibly meet up at the Starbucks near the library? Btw, I love your hair. Love the red. Also, Mikey just told me you were related to him. I never saw it, haha. I had heard of “a brother” in high school but I never made the connection between “Gerard Way who plays the guitar during Study Hall in the library” and Gerard, my brother. I never got a chance to formally meet you until now; it must have been fate ;)"_

 

 

Was that a fucking winking face? Gerard felt his face blush, and he felt like a high school girl who finally got a text back from her crush. Technically, he was acting like one. 

 

Gerard’s fingers flew over the minuscule keyboard on his phone. He began typing out a “Haha, oh Mikey…” then realized he had nothing to follow that. He backspaced it all and sat at the table in silence. He glanced at his schedule and made sure there was room for him and Frank to hang out. He had to watch Grey’s Anatomy tonight because on Saturday he was going to his Mom’s place. Ugh, he remembered he had written “run on treadmill”, he crossed that out, rolling his eyes at his stupid decision. 

 

_How the fuck are people supposed to type on this little thing. god this is why I call everyone. texting is overrated and hard…_ Gerard pondered about what to say to Frank. He had to call Lindsey, or Mikey, or his mom? He needed advice from someone. He doubted Lindsey was awake at this time of morning. He had bothered Mikey enough. That left his mother. Donna Way.

 

Gerard had 0 clue what made him do it, but his hands pressed CONTACTS, MOM and CALL and before he knew it the phone was ringing.

 

“Gerard? It’s 8:30 in the morning, are you okay? Did something happen to you or Mikey or Ray? Why are you awake and why the fuck did you wake me up this better be important.” Donna spoke fast and loud, her voice filling with panic and fear. She had picked up on the first ring. Gerard felt bad for scaring her. Gerard was never up before 12pm and he sure as hell wouldn’t be calling his mother to have a casual chat before it was officially morning. 

 

“Officially morning” in the Way household was 1 in the afternoon.

 

“No, no, Mom, I swear we’re okay, I needed...” He paused and took deep breath, gathering all the courage he needed. He was mostly preparing for a long round of “Awww”s and “My baby is growing up”s and “I’ve got to call Auntie”.

 

“I needed dating advice.” He said it with way too much speed, that he was afraid that Donna wold mishear him and he’d be forced to repeat those four dreadful lines again.

 

“Awwww, Gerard, I’m honored you called me. You’re growing up! Well let’s see… Hmm.. Tell me the whole backstory.” And so Gerard told his mother everything about Frank. From bumping into him in the hallway, to book club, to finding his note, leaving out no details whatsoever. 

 

“Ah, I remember Frank. He was a nice boy, do he and Mikey still talk?” Gerard nodded his head, then realized his mother couldn’t actually see him. He mumbled out a “yep”, feeling quite jealous of his younger brother, having the opportunity to see Frank whenever he wanted. Damn, Belleville WAS as small as they said it was. Gerard regretted moving out the second school got out. Apparently, Frank was at their house almost every day that Summer.

 

“Ask Mikey what bands Frank likes, and wear that shirt. Make an impression too! When was the last time you washed your hair?” 

 

“But Momm, what if I don’t have that specific shirt? We’re already struggling to pay rent this month AND the heat got shut off! We’re suffering back here! I can’t buy anything!” Gerard whined like a 6 year old. 

 

 "Believe me, I know you, Gerard, you only own band shirts.” Gerard opened his mouth to differ, but then he realized he had slept in a Fall Out Boy shirt that Mikey had sent him, courtesy of Pete.

 

“Talk to Mikey! Find out what Frank likes, so you’ll have something to talk about. You have enough in common, I remember him well. You should bring him over this weekend, I miss him.” 

 

“I’ve gotta go, Mom, I need food in my system and I gotta text Mikey AND Frank.”

 

“Bye, Gerard, love you! I hope you two become an item! I gotta call everyone and tell them you won’t be single anymore.” Gerard knew that Donna had winked over the phone.

 

“Bye Mom! Love you too!” 

 

~~~~

 

Gerard texted in two different ways, formal and informal

 

To Frank: “ _Hi Frank, do you wanna meet up today at Starbucks at 1pm? XoG”_

 

To Mikey: “ _fuCK MIKES YOU GTTA HEP ME WE’RE FUCKIG MEETIG UP I MIGHT SLIP AND FALL ON HIS DICK (ON PURPOSE TEEHEE) TELL ME ALL ABOUT FRANK WHAT SHOULD I WEAR WHAT SHOUDL I ORDER WHATV DO TI DO??? I HIGHKEY MIGHT WANNA BLOW HIM IN FCKNG STARBUCKS"_

 

Gerard was making toast and eggs when Mikey called. He knew exactly why Mikey was calling, and he knew he was about to get reprimanded. He danced to the cheesy “Marimba” iPhone ringtone for a couple seconds before picking up. _Damn it’s not a bad song am I the only one in the world that loves that ringtone?_

 

“Hey-lo, what’s up Mikey? I’m kind of cooking at the moment so if the call is dropped, I probably dropped my phone in the toaster.” Gerard thought about his planner, and how’d he have to schedule a day to get a new phone. 

 

**What a schedule whore.**

 

“First of all, don’t ever say “ _I MIGHT SLIP AND FALL ON HIS DICK ON PURPOSE”_ ever again. Got it?” Mikey said all of this totally monotone, as always. Gerard knew Mikey was joking around, but two could play at that game.

 

“Fine. That means you gotta stop saying how you blew Pete in a taxi, or on a bus, or in fucking Mars or wherever the fuck it was this time. Got it?” Gerard, queen of sass strikes again.

 

“Okay, back to Frank. He likes all the bands you like…basically. Wear the Misfits shirt I got you. And wash your hair. And um, talk about music. Frank was in a ton of bands. He plays guitar, so like bring up guitar. Don’t talk about the silly book, that’s what book club was for.” 

 

“But that’s why we agreed to meet up."

 

“But now he knows he’s meeting **Gerard Way,** so he’s gonna wanna talk about other shit, not books.” Mikey droned on and on about what to and not to bring up, what to order, what to wear. Everything. Mikey really was a good brother. 

 

In the middle of the phone call, he got a text.

 

 

FRANK IERO: _Sounds good! See U then! XoFrnk_

 

 

_“_ I gotta go, Gee, good luck, um don’t ruin my friendship with him.” Mikey hung up and Gerard realized that it was time to get ready. He hadn’t gotten ready for a date in years. Hell, he only left the house to go to the Comic Book Store (his work), to the library, and to Mikey’s house and his Mom’s house.

 

He could do this. He was gonna rock this. 

 

For the first time in his whole life, he opened his planner and put “<3 Date <3” Underneath ‘Friday’

 

 

 

 

**what a fucking schedule hoe**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's legit like 12am, i'm tired af and i didn't profread (idk how to spell it's too late and i need to wake up in a little bit) this v well sorry 
> 
> XoBella or XoGeeisajacketslut


	6. Why Can't Gerard Be A Normal Person?

It was Friday, and needless to say, Gerard was a fucking _wreck._

 

Never in his entire life had he felt so anxious; not even that one time in the fourth grade where he was cast for Peter Pan in the _Peter Pan_  production. _What a way to make a goddamn impression_ , he always regarded the occasion.

 

Gerard stood in front of the small mirror in the bathroom he and Ray shared, trying to ignore the many bottles of hair gel and spray that Ray always used to keep his mane under control. Gerard always yelled at Ray for spending so much on hair products, but as soon as he got into the whole hair dying thing, he  no longer reprimanded Ray for his hair habits. He was so shaky, he realized. Even as he applied some eyeliner, he couldn't even keep the lines straight. Eventually, he just gave up on perfection and smudged the makeup a bit, and then applied some powder in order to even out his complexion, making him seem even more like a vampire. As Mikey always said, Gerard was basically a sassy vampire, and Gerard never denied nor accepted this statement, though he new it was true. After he fixed up his face, Gerard ran a comb through his hair again (which Frank loved, as he had told Gerard through text that once) and glared at his reflection. "Just be normal," he told himself, and then remembered that he was wearing a Misfits shirt, eyeliner, and had bright red hair. With a sigh, Gerard pulled up the skinny red jeans he was wearing and rocked back on his feet, nodding at his Converse. Damn, what a fine choice of shoes he had. 

 

According to the small digital clock that Gerard had insisted on keeping on top of the toilet, he had a few more minutes until he was scheduled to leave the apartment. Just as he was about to leave, Gerard caught sight of the mascara. He tried to convince himself that it'd be far too much; the hair, the tight clothes, the extra-pale skin... Wasn't that enough already?

 

Nope.

 

Gerard cursed at himself for bending at the will of a small plastic tube of eyelash-refining liquid, and hurriedly applied some. However, as he sized himself up in the mirror a final time, Gerard decided that he had done so for the best. The mascara actually made him look a bit feminine, no matter how coarse or large his out-of-place hands were. He smiled and caught one last glance of himself in the mirror before slipping out of the bathroom, nearly crashing into a frazzled Ray. "Shit!" Gerard cried, pushing Ray away from him as to not ruin his outfit and appearance. Taken away, Ray took a few steps back, and then looked Gerard up and down. And then he smiled smugly. "What's the fancy get-up for?" Ray asked knowingly, shoving a handful of Goldfish into his mouth. Gerard sighed at Ray and tried to push past him, mumbling, "Aren't you supposed to be at work?" Knowing that he wouldn't be able to get anything out of Gerard, Ray just shook his head and shrugged carelessly. "Let us off early, thank God," he replied, but Gerard wasn't really listening. Instead, Gerard slipped away from the conversation and walked towards the door, grabbing a random jacket off of the door-hook before walking out of the apartment. He didn't say anything else as he opened the door and practically jumped out, remembering that he was on a tight schedule and that he wanted to be a few minutes early for the date.

 

A date. This was a date. It had to be; they were going to talk about a book (or not, as Mikey had suggested) over coffee and a pastry. Gerard had even brought the extra money he intended to spend on Frank's "meal", since it was the romantic thing to do. Gerard raced down the sidewalk, ignoring the buzz of afternoon traffic in the city, and weaved his way in and out of the crowd of commuters. Starbucks wasn't too far away, but then again, nothing was. Everything except for large grocery stores and neighborhoods seemed to be located on the main road near Gerard and Ray's apartment, so there was no need for a car. Hell, there was even a library nearby. Gerard smiled internally at that thought, and how he had gone to Book Club just to see Frank. He wasn't even really paying attention to the context of the book they were reading, but made it his mission to get Frank to laugh just once every time they crossed paths.

 

Occupied by his thoughts, Gerard nearly missed the small coffee shop stuck between a random Taco Bell and a book store, but looked up just in time to see the dimly-lit windows and to smell the alluring scent of caffeine. Gerard smiled and took a deep breath, trying to ignore the people sipping their overpriced coffee to his left, and opened the doors of Starbucks, stepping into the warm atmosphere and inhaling deeply. God, he loved the aroma of coffee. He looked up at the oversized clock placed about a series of chairs to the right, and read that he only had two minutes before the time he and Frank had agreed on. He practically lived by a clock, so he found that he had become quite proficient at clock-reading. Gerard padded up to the front of the coffee shop and stood behind the two people waiting in line, trying to decide which beverage would most appeal to Frank. By the time he reached the counter, Gerard still wasn't sure what he was going to get. In the end, he just decided on a vanilla latte with two extra shots, because who didn't like that classic? The barista asked his name, to which he replied "Gerard", and then he handed over five dollars, receiving his change. Since he was pretty much broke, Gerard didn't really have the extra money to blow on a pastry, so he just saved the other money he had in his pocket and walked over a few steps to wait for his coffee. He reached for his tote, only to find that it wasn't there. For a split second, Gerard grew incredibly nervous and broke into a cold sweat. But then he remembered that he had left it at home. He found it almost funny how empty the space seemed without his beloved bag, but he had convinced himself that he was going to make sure that Frank believed he was a laid-back person, not a complete schedule whore.

 

It took an eternity for the man to call out his name to come retrieve his coffee, and Gerard took the coffee gladly, even whispering a small word of thanks as he did so. As he turned around, sniffing from the mouth of his cup, he came face-to-face with the one and only Frank. Gerard nearly fell apart right there, looking at this guy. Frank had all of his piercings in, had combed his hair in just the right way, and looked just... amazing. Gerard looked at his shirt and noticed the Black Flag logo, and then at the loose, ripped jeans that fit Frank all too well. It surprised Gerard how absolutely gorgeous someone can look at times. And was that eyeshadow and eyeliner Gerard was seeing? 

 

"Hello there, stranger," Frank beamed, smiling up at Gerard, who was busy catching flies. Regaining his sense, Gerard shut his mouth, and then replied, "Hey, Frankie." Frankie. Goddamn _Frankie_? What kind of a nickname was that? Instead of looking revolted, Frank seemed almost pleased. "I quite fancy that nickname," Frank said in his best British accent, and then giggled. "Sorry... I also quite fancy your face today, Gee. As well as your choice in attire." Gerard barely even registered what Frank had said before he was muttering, "You look great as well... I mean, umm, Black Flag is a good band." _Stupid, stupid, stupid._  

 

Frank just giggled again and looked down at his shirt, nodding. "They're one of my favorites. I'm going to get this logo tattooed, right here," he announced, pointing to his arm, "Anyways, I love the Misfits. How'd you know?" Gerard took a careful sip from his coffee, the liquid scorching his mouth and causing his eyes to water slightly, and then admitted, "Mikey told me. I like them too, so I decided to wear this shirt..." He almost added that he had thrown on the bright red pants because Frank had said that he liked the color, but was able to cut himself off before he could reveal any other embarrassing details. God, this is why he never got laid, wasn't it? He was a modern Moses, all sputtering and speechless, and everyone knew it. Frank told Gerard that he was going to go get a coffee real quick, and then they could talk, but Gerard shook his head and offered to pay for the beverage. "I'm the one who suggested we come here!" he urged, pushing Frank a bit as they got back into the line. However, as Frank ordered his tea ( _Dammit, Gerard, you should've gotten tea_ , Gerard scolded himself), he pushed away the money that Gerard shoved at his face and paid for his own drink. A little upset and offended, Gerard placed the money back into his pocket, and then admired ~~Frank's ass~~ Frank's height from his place in line. He was quite short, after all. And Gerard found that fucking adorable.

 

"Gee, you there? Frank to Gee-rard," Frank teased, breaking Gerard out of his booty-staring trance. Completely embarrassed, Gerard turned a bright red that gave his hair and pants a run for their money, and he mumbled some hasty apologies before saying something about getting the two a table. He was able to get to a two-seated table without dying, so he considered that a plus. _Act normal. Be a normal person for once._ Frank waited for his tea, whatever flavor it was, and then returned to Gerard, settling into a chair and smiling once more. This time, Gerard attempted to return the smile, failing miserably. "So, how was your week?" Frank asked casually, sipping from the steaming tea and crossing his legs. Gerard bit his tongue, trying to think about his speech, but decided to just roll with the conversation. "You just saw me yesterday at Book Club," he replied, amused. Frank chuckled and shrugged, and said, "Well, we don't talk about normal things half the time. I mean, honestly Gee, we never talk at all." At that, Gerard's chest tightened. "Well, you're not exactly the most approachable person. What with your intimidating height and all," Gerard slurred, giggling a little and sipping from his coffee.

 

Frank cracked up, and then furrowed his brows humorously. "One does not mention the height of another without being prepared for a fight, y'know. I might just have to fight you now. Short people rules, yeah. We have lots of rules, codes," he teased, and Gerard rolled his eyes. "Oh, please. As if. You're the shortest adult in Belleville I'd bet. However, I'd probably knock you out before you even thought about throwing a punch," he retorted, and the two shared a giggle. Frank bit his bottom lip and glanced out the window quickly. "Yeah, with good looks," he said smoothly, raising his eyebrows a bit, and then sipping from his cup. If Gerard didn't die earlier, he sure as hell did in that moment. "I... Uh... I used to play guitar?" was his genius-like answer, and he literally wanted to drown himself in his coffee at that moment. This is definitely the reason his sex life is a literal zero.

 

His new friend's eyes widened, and Frank smiled. "No way!" he cried, even though he totally already knew that Gerard had played guitar a bit during his high school years, "Me too! I've been in a few bands." Not that Gerard would be too quick to admit it, but he had looked up Frank and listened to every damn song in every damn band Frank had played in and listened to them. He made the time for it, and was glad he did. Frank was literally a magician when it came to playing the guitar and screaming. "I know. I looked you up and... Shit, not like, _creepy_ or anything... Ah I fucked myself up on that one, didn't I?" Gerard spewed, and Frank snorted. "You think _that's_ creepy? I called Mikey to find stuff out about you, and then looked you up. Turns out your a hell of a fine artist, man. Dude, like, no shit, your artwork is _amazing_! Like, straight out of a comic book amazing," he related, taking a swig of tea and staring at Gerard with this look in his eyes that could only be described as pure amazement. Taken aback, Gerard stammered out his thanks, and then complimented Frank on his captivating musical abilities. "I watched some videos too, and how the fuck do you have that energy?"

 

In a little over five hours, Gerard and Frank talked about everything under the sky, from music to porn to clothes to toothpaste to personal lives (many tears were shed) and even to the basics. Gerard had specifically made time for only five hours, but without him realizing it, the time had gone by far too quickly. It was Ray's turn to make dinner, which, knowing Ray, would probably be some cheap pizza that had way too much sauce on it. When Gerard took notice of the time, his stomach did a flip, and he was up and out of his chair, pale as a ghost. "I... I have to go, I'm late!" he stuttered, gripping his empty coffee cup and glancing at Frank. "Hey, it's okay. It's a Friday. Calm down," Frank said soothingly, placing a small hand on Gerard's arm. This definitely calmed Gerard down a bit, and he sat down hesitantly. Frank and him sat in a comfortable silence for a few seconds, and then Frank suggested nervously, "Would you, I dunno, be interested in hanging over at my place tonight? I feel like we didn't get to talk enough, and, umm, I want to get to know you more. If you want to, I mean, you don't have to..." However, Gerard was totally down for a sleepover at Frank's. 

 

"Oh, really? I wouldn't want to be a bother or anything," he began, but Frank shook his head quickly and shot to his feet. "Certainly not. It gets lonely over there... Want me to walk you home so that you can grab your sleepover shit? It'll be, like, totes-ally fun," Frank replied eagerly, adding the last sentence in an over-exaggerated mocking of a typical teenage girl. Gerard giggled and nodded, and followed Frank to the trash can, threw the empty cup away, and then walked out the door (which Frank so kindly held open for him, may he add).

 

Holy shit, this was _actually_ happening. Wait until Mikey heard about this. 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unfortunately, I got grounded. I'll do my best to take part in the chapters!
> 
> xoromanticizingchemicals


	7. Frank Iero Has Never Seen Shrek

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> {anything in these brackets in italics means it's me, bella, doing stupid commentrary}

The energy Gerard felt was similar to that of a marathon runner. Happiness and fear mixed together. Stress and excitement. 

 

Gerard was screaming on the inside. Not an afraid scream, more like a “wow-I-might-get-laid-for-the-first-time-this-year” scream. Frank walked him home and let him run inside and get his stuff. Gerard ran to his room, bumping into Ray on the way. He had been giving Ray the cold shoulder lately, for not cooking and being late on rent...again. 

 

“Ay, Gerard, what’s the rush, man?” Ray stopped him before he could escape to the safety of his bedroom. “You’ve been so sneaky lately, by the way,  _did you have a date tonight?”_ Ray’s voice got all quiet and high-pitched, similar to the voice of an over-energized teenage girl who found out her best friend was pregnant. Gerard was having none of it. Not tonight. 

 

“Fine, yes, I did, and I am sleeping over at his house tonight, so if you’ll kindly excuse me.” Gerard pushed past him and slammed the door to his room. He grabbed a duffel bag out of his closet, and opened his drawers. _What do people even bring to sleepovers?_ He opened his drawers and looked at his accumulating collected of band t-shirts. He pulled out a _Pulp_ t-shirt, black skinny jeans, and a pair of socks. He walked over to his shelf by his bed, and he picked up his schedule. He glanced at it, then put it back down. He didn’t need it tonight.

 

He zipped up his bag and walked to the bathroom. He looked around for everything he needed for tonight. He grabbed his toothbrush and toothpaste and he threw various makeup products into a smaller bag he had gotten from his mother in high school. He threw in a nail polish too, black of course. Hopefully Frank loved painted nails. He unzipped his duffel and threw in the makeup, nail, and teeth products. He walked out of the bathroom and glared at Ray as he left the apartment. He hoped Ray would remember to lock the door, as he forgot a lot.

 

“Ready to go?” Frank said as he linked his arm with Gerard’s. Gerard stared into his hazel eyes and felt himself get lost in them. He thought once again about his abandoned schedule, but shrugged it off. He didn’t need to plane everything out. _I’ll live in the now for once_

 

 “Yes, I am.” He said with a huge smile on his face. They walked back to the coffee shop, to where Frank’s car was parked. They got into the vehicle, and once it was turned on, _The Smiths_ started playing at full volume.

 

“Sorry!” Frank said, whilst turning on the volume. His face and neck turned a bright shade of reddish-pink. Gerard just laughed, and pushed Frank’s hand away to turn the volume back up.

 

They drove in silence, the only sounds being Morrissey’s voice accompanied by various instruments. While Frank was driving, Gerard took the chance to text Mikey.

 

TO MIKEY: MIKEY [7:02]

                  MIKES [7:02]

                  MMMMMIIIKEYWAY [7:02]

                  MIKEYFUCKINGWAY RESPOND ASAP [7:02]

                  EMERGECNY [7:02]

                  AHHH I AM SO HAPPY TEXT ME [7:02]

                  M I K E Y TEXT ME I HAVE N E W S [7:03]

                  I’M GONNA CALL PETE IF U DON’T TEXT ME [7:03]

                  I’M GONNA CALL 911 I HAVE IMPORTAT INFO [7:03]

                  PLSSSS [7:03]

                  MIKES QUICK B4 I HAVE TO GO [7:03]

 

Innocent Mikey was just lounging with Pete. They were “watching” a movie when Mikey’s phone buzzed, and buzzed again. 6 times in a row. Mikey somehow knew it was Gerard, and started getting up. Pete pulled him back down. But then, Mikey’s phone buzzed 5 more times, and Pete let Mikey go.

 

TO GERARD: What the fuck do you want [7:04]

 

TO MIKEY: I’m having a sleepover at Frank’s tonight [7:04]

 

TO GERARD: Huge whoop, you could’ve told me that in one message, instead of 11.

 

TO MIKEY: Sorry lil bro, I got #excited do u think I’m gonna get laid

 

TO GERARD: I don’t fucking know, and I don’t fucking care, gtg

 

Gerard calmed down a bit more, and turned off his phone. When they pulled up at Frank’s apartment building, Gerard wished he could call Mikey. Frank ran around and opened the door for Gerard, taking his duffel bag off the floor of the vehicle. Gerard ran ahead and opened the door to the apartment building for Frank. Frank responded by kissing Gerard on the cheek, and saying “Thank you, my kind lord.” In that British accent again.

 

“When I was _{a young boy}_ kid, like preschool, I used to make my parents call me “The Sleep Lord”. To this day, I don’t know why. I hated sleeping and nighttime in general. I liked the mornings when cartoons were on. I'd make Mikey wake up early and watch them with me.  I also used to love to be called “Milk Friend”. I didn’t even drink that much milk. My childhood was...interesting” Gerard rambled on and on about silly nicknames while on the elevator to Frank’s apartment.

 

"What nicknames do you have now?" Frank asked as they walked down the hall. "Just Gee, and 'bitch'. That's Mikey's favorite." Gerard said with a laugh.

 

Frank opened the door with a huge smile. Gerard immediately noticed the tiny dog running towards him at rapid speed. Gerard dropped his bag and ran toward the puppy, engulfing the tiny creature in his arms. Frank laughed and picked up Gerard’s bag, setting it on a table.

 

"Do you wanna watch a movie?" Frank walked over to a small cabinet beside a small TV. He opened it, producing many DVDs and CDs. Gerard saw some familiar ones, and a ton of horror movies. Gerard nodded and walked over, placing down the tiny dog. Despite all the eyeliner he wore and all that radiating "emo", Gerard could NOT stand horror movies. He bent down and inspected all the cases. He saw Shrek and picked it up. He chucked a bit and turned around to face Frank.

 

"I have picked out our movie for tonight." He thrust the Shrek case into Frank's hands. Frank looked down and couldn't keep in his laughter.

 

"I got this as a joke for my birthday, I'll be 100% honest with you and tell you that I've never seen it in my life." Frank shielded his face, as if Gerard was gonna punch him for not having seen Shrek. Tbh, Gerard should have punched Frank, who hasn't seen Shrek. It's a masterpiece.

 

"Oh my god, then we've got to watch it!" Gerard sat down on the tiny couch and patted the area next to him. Frank sat down, then quickly sat up, saying that he needed to make popcorn. Gerard saw this as a chance to send Mikey the eggplant emoji 60 times. Take that back, he made a group chat with Mikey AND Pete and sent the eggplant emoji, and the peach emoji, and the smirk emoji.

 

TO GERARD [FROM MIKEY]: did u get laid lmao

 

TO MIKEY, PETE [FROM GERARD]: not yet but u probably already did, 6th time today

 

TO GERARD [FROM PETE]: lmao ofc and *4th, we did it in Denny's bathroom

 

TO PETE [FROM GERARD]: why am I not shocked

 

TO GERARD [FROM MIKEY]: stop texting us, go suck a dick

 

TO MIKEY [FROM GERARD]: love u mikes (sry pete)

 

Frank came back with a huge bowl of buttered popcorn and two bottles of water. "Unless you want something, heavier?" Frank winked. Gerard laughed and replied with a "Yes". Frank brought back two beers. Gerard took one and turned to watch the movie. Gerard sat in silence { _car radio_ } watching the movie with immense concentration, shushing Frank any time he tried to speak.

 

Frank got up every once in awhile for beer refills, until halfway though the movie, they were both quite tipsy. They were both on their fifth beers. Frank somehow ended up on Gerard's lap, inches away from his crotch. Neither of them were paying attention to the movie. Gerard was running his hands through Frank's mohawk.

 

"Your hair smells like Pantene." Gerard said accidentally, Frank didn't hear him. Gerard sighed a sigh of relief. 

 

Frank was laying on Gerard's lap, looking up, watching Gerard play with his hair. They met eyes for a minute. Frank looked at Gerard's lips, then into his eyes, as asking for subtle consent. Gerard smiled and Frank sat up quickly, locking his lips with Gerard's. Gerard closed his eyes and let himself melt into the kiss. Frank's lips were smooth, not chapped (unlike Gerard's). Frank tangled his hands in Gerard's hair, and Gerard let his hands rest on Frank's lower back.

 

It started off slow. Their lips moved in synchrony. Gerard kept feeling Frank's cold lip ring against his own lip and he loved it. Shrek played in the background, neither of them cared about the movie anymore. The kiss gradually got more intense, and Gerard realized this was better than all the kisses he had exchanged with different people in high school and college. This was Gerard's best kiss yet. Gerard realized how lucky he was. 

 

Gerard pushed Frank down until he was on top of him { _cough gerard tops_ }. He tangled his hands in Frank's hair. Frank squeaked out a noise sounding like a moan and he turned red, once again. They paused to both remove their shirts.The kissing moved downwards and Gerard began to start giving Frank hickies that he would have a helluva hard time covering up tomorrow. Good thing Gerard brought his makeup, he was supposed to go to his mom's house tomorrow. Frank let himself get covered in hickies, he liked them. Frank suddenly got a burst of energy and flipped Gerard over so Gerard was on his back, and Frank was straddling him. Frank bent down and starting sucking hickies into Gerard's neck, as payback. He purposely did them high up on his neck, to show everyone that Gerard was his. He reconnected their lips for a short second, until Frank starting laughing against Gerard's lips. Frank was more tipsy then Gerard. He fell onto Gerard's chest and laid there for a minute or so. Frank could feel Gerard's heart beating in his chest, he listened for a little bit. It made Frank smile. 

 

"Do you wanna like, move this off the couch or something?" Frank whispered into Gerard's ear. Shrek continued playing in the background.

 

"You read my mind." Gerard said. He left Frank pull him off the coach and drag him to the bedroom. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i left the s e x scene for Faith bc I can't write those kinds of scenes for shit she's amazing at smut and stuff check it all out she's gr9
> 
> i tried to keep this srs but i had to incorporate shrek into it, i wanted them to fuck while shrek played in the background but i decided not


	8. What You Said Will Be Held Against You, So Only Say My Name

If Gerard wasn't so fucking horny, he probably would've examined the many posters strewn all over the walls of Frank's bedroom. There were signed autographs, pictures, frames, and so many books all over the place that if Gerard wasn't so eager for the much missed sex, he would tell Frank off for being so damn unorganized.

 

However, given the current circumstances, Gerard had a boner that really needed attending to.

 

Frank sank down onto his bed and looked up at Gerard with a small smile, which really made things a little bit awkward. "So, are we gonna do it or nah?" Frank asked hopefully, and just like that, Gerard was on him again. Now that they had much more room, the kissing was all elbows and tongue, which would be way hotter had they not just kissed over watching Shrek. Wanting to assert some dominance, though Gerard knew that he wasn't the strongest or boldest of the two, he pinned Frank against the headboard, planting soft kisses all the way to his collarbone. Frank wriggled a bit, as he had never been kissed like this. He would never tell Gerard this, but he and Mikey had fucked several times back in high school. Well, that was when Mikey would get so high and drunk that he'd basically just pull Frank into a bedroom or bathroom and fuck him senseless and raw, so it wasn't the most sentimental sex.

 

When Gerard pulled away to look at Frank, who was panting and closing his eyes, Frank whispered, "I guess that's a yes, then." Gerard giggled and scooted back a little bit, so that he was poised right over Frank's stomach. He tried so hard to ignore the bulge in Frank's pants, but it was really damn hard when his face was literally three inches away from it. He gestured awkwardly to Frank's pants, and Frank nodded a little too eagerly, so Gerard took his sweet time unbuttoning them and pulling them down a bit. Frank helped by wiggling is legs out of them, and it was way easier than trying to get off skinny jeans. Once the pants were pulled to Frank's knees, Gerard also pulled the underwear down, and literally gasped as Frank's length sprung free. For such a small little fucker, he sure did have a thick cock.

 

"Jesus, if I knew what I had been missing out on, I would've gotten into your pants sooner," Gerard muttered, running his hands up and down Frank's thighs. "Well, what were you gonna do, fuck me over the table at Book Club while everyone watched?" was Frank's breathless reply, and Gerard giggled. All of a sudden, his horniness became too much for him to bear, and he leaned over Frank's boner, running his tongue over the slit carefully. Frank responded almost immediately, tangling his hands into Gerard's hair. The only thing Gerard was thinking was, _I don't remember this being in my schedule_... But that was fine with him.

 

Gerard worked off of the small and desperate moans and swears pouring from Frank's mouth, and he practically choked himself. He'd be lying if he said that this wasn't the best fucking night of his life, as it had been way too long since he had given someone a blow-job. Before Frank could cum, which he tried to warn Gerard by pulling his hair roughly and moaning like a pubescent teenager, Gerard pulled off and looked up at Frank innocently, which caused Frank to murmur some curses and to roll off the bed, ripping away his pants and boxers, and even his shirt. Gerard admired the little ink on Frank's body, but hardly noticed when Frank started peeling away Gerard's clothes, which were already drenched with sweat. They left the discarded clothes somewhere by the door, and Frank flipped Gerard over onto his back, spreading his legs a bit. This was way too much for Gerard, and he was already whimpering as he saw Frank retrieve a box of condoms and the lube. "I keep it just in case, but the last time I had sex was in high school, so yeah," he admitted humorously, and the two giggled.

 

The giggling ceased when Frank began to roll the condom over his length and lubed it up, and then he lubed up his fingers before holding them up to Gerard. "Is this your first time with gay sex? Or just having shoved up your ass for the first time?" Frank asked him smoothly, the corner of his mouth tugging into a smile. Gerard shook his head and raised his hips a bit, because to be honest, he had a raging boner that really needed some attention. Frank laughed and nodded, and then pushed a finger into Gerard. It wasn't much, because Gerard made a habit of fingering himself and masturbating, and then another digit was slid in. And then another.

 

Things were a little tight, because, well, Gerard hadn't had sex in forever, so Frank took his time in prepping Gerard. Though the two were horny as fuck and desperately needed the sexual contact, both were strongly attracted to each other.

 

Frank finally (after an eternity of prep) took his fingers out of Gerard, and pushed his cock against Gerard's hole. "Are you sure you wanna...?" Frank asked eagerly, and though he was concerned for Gerard's wellbeing, he honestly wanted to fuck Gerard senseless. However, Gerard was all too excited for this, and quickly nodded. That was all the confirmation Frank needed before he grabbed Gerard's thighs for support and pushed in a few inches, wincing at the pained and surprised expression on Gerard's face. He gave Gerard some time to adjust once he had pushed in his whole length, and when Gerard got situated, he pulled out a bit, only to thrust right back in.

 

This pattern continued, and slowly but surely, the pain Gerard was experiencing morphed into a much missed and indescribable pleasure. His loud moans filled the room, and he was soon joined by Frank. Gerard was mumbling curse after curse, and spilling Frank's name like it was a mantra. He was so tempted to make a song reference, but he refrained from doing so. This was sex.

 

"Frank, oh God, please..." he groaned, quickly approaching his climax. Frank took Gerard's length into his hand and quickly jacked him off, his lips finding Gerard's. The grip Gerard had on the bedsheets became much tighter as he finally let himself fall over the edge, and, with a shrill and long moan, he came between the two of them. That very interesting yet appealing sound sent Frank over the edge as well, and after he let go over Gerard's chest, planting a final kiss on Gerard's forehead, he collapsed over him. The two laid there, panting, until Gerard breathlessly spoke, "Well, umm, that was... Wow." Frank giggled and kissed Gerard's cheek, and in that moment, Gerard's courage ventured as far to ask Frank to be his boyfriend. "Umm, if you'd like, maybe we could be more than just the two fools who mess around at Book Club desperately trying to get each others' attention...?" he asked nervously, and after chuckling, Frank nodded.

 

"However, I think we should probably clean off. This is going to be one awesome fucking sleepover," Frank managed to say in his most childlike voice, and the two shared a laugh before running through the house to the bathroom. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for how awfully written this is guys. I've been grounded, but I'm a sneaky prick. So this was written in like ten minutes and it sucks.
> 
> Also, writing smut with my friend is just weird to me. I'm a totally different person what is wrong with me 
> 
> xoromanticizingchemicals


	9. This Chapter Is Sin and Memes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> legit i am sorry if this is awful i started writing on thursday, was busy on friday, and tried to finish writing tonight and it's a wreck whoops be prepared for sin, memes, and just overall a train wreck

Gerard woke up with a pounding headache, barely remembering the events of last night. He remembered watching Shrek, making out, making out while watching Shrek, then falling asleep in Frank’s bed. He rolled over to face Frank then looked down. They were both completely naked. Gerard tried to move around and felt a sharp pain in his ass, and the events of last night slowly unfolded in his head. He had to text Mikey. Gerard sat up quickly but quietly, not wanting to wake Frank up. He tried to move around as softy as possible to find at least his boxers. After a tedious, an quiet dramatic, two minute search, he found them. He slipped them on and put on a hoodie that was hanging on the back of Frank’s door. Now to find his phone.

 

He opened Frank’s door ever so carefully an tiptoed down the hallway, he was doing well until the dog started barking. Gerard panicked, not wanting to wake Frank up.

 

“Shhhh, I gotta find my phone, don’t wake up Sleeping Beauty.” Gerard kept on talking to the dog, and was too tired to realize that the dog couldn’t give a fuck. He speed-walked around the living room until he found his phone wedged in the couch cushions. He looked at the tiny clock on his screen and saw that it was already 11:00am. He had a couple of texts from Mikey and his mom, and he remembered he was supposed to go to Donna’s today.

 

NEW MESSAGES:

MIKEY WAY (3)

DONNA ‘MOM’ WAY (2) AND 1 MISSED CALL

 

“Shoot. I gotta call her now.” At this moment, Gerard really wished he had his fucking schedule. He went straight to the messages app and didn’t open Mikey’s texts, he assumed they were about Pete. Gerard began to type out a message to his mother, explaining that he’d be late, when he realized he was so tired he could barely type. He walked into Frank’s kitchen to search for a coffee machine. Then, he realized his head was still pounding and he needed Advil. He walked out of the kitchen, and into the bathroom to find some Advil, luckily, it was in the first cabinet in the bathroom. On the way back to the kitchen, Gerard collided with Frank in the hallway. They both fell down in the middle of the hallway, laughing. 

 

“I heard you get up, and I figured you were gonna make coffee, since that’s what you talked about a lot on Friday.” Frank stood up first and reached down to help Gerard get up. When he pulled Gerard up, he kissed him on the cheek. Gerard turned his head and connected their lips for a brief second.

 

“That’s the plan. Always the plan. Schedule or not.” He whispered as he walked toward the kitchen.

 

~~~

 

“I, uh, found some, photos from last night.” Frank spoke quietly. They were both sitting down with a cup of coffee and a plate of muffins in between them.

 

“Lemme see.” Gerard made grabbing hands at Frank’s phone until he passed it over. They took a fuckton of photos last night, mostly blurry pictures of them making out, but as he scrolled by, he saw a few NSFW pictures of them, and he felt his face get hot. The blood rushed directly to his dick, and he said a silent prayer, praying for it to go away because "it is not the time". He scrolled past the NSFW pictures and saw them laying in bed, each with a beer in their hand. It was the clearest selfie ever, yet, he didn’t remember taking it. In the background, the TV was on, and by the scene, it was obvious that they watched The Fault In Our Stars. 

 

“Damn, we watched T F I O S and I remember none of it?” He spelt out all the letters, way too tired to say the full name. I mean, he didn’t even finish reading the book, it’s a good thing he doesn’t remember the movie.

 

“Shit, man, I don’t remember taking any of these pictures. Like anything from after we like hooked up is a blur in my mind. I don’t even remember getting out of bed, to be honest.” Frank said with a chuckle. Gerard’s phone rang and he walked to the living room to get it. It was Mikey. Reluctantly, Gerard clicked “accept” and put the phone to his ear.

 

“Yes?” Gerard answered in a sassy tone.

 

“Oh my god, finally, you answer me, did you read my texts. Wait, you probably didn’t.” Mikey answered his own question and made Gerard wonder what the fuck was in those texts.

 

“No I’m sorry, what did you need?” Gerard said as he looked over at Frank. He rolled his eyes and laughed.

 

“Well I had a question for Frank but he never turns his phone off silent so I figured I’d ask you.”

 

“Mikey, just get on with it, I gotta drive to Ma’s, and I still have to shower and pack.”

 

“Why did Frank send me pictures and him and you ‘doing it’, like I didn’t need the pictures a simple text saying that you finally got laid would’ve been sufficient.” All the blood drained out of Gerard’s face. 

 

“Shit, gotta go, Mikes” Gerard pressed “END” and snatched Frank’s phone out of his hand. Gerard went to the home screen and saw that Frank had 52 unread messages. Gerard’s first thought was “damnmnn he’s popular”. Gerard looked at his recent outgoing texts and yep, there it was. He sent 11 pictures to Mikey. With one text message saying “AYYYY I GOT YOUR BRO INTO MY BED IMA TOP TONIGHT WISH ME LUCK BRO”

 

Gerard was cracking up. He was deeply anxious and afraid about the situation, but he sat there laughing. At least HE didn’t send any messages. He handed the phone to Frank and opened the convo to show him. Frank’s pupils shrunk in size and his face turned a shade of pink.

 

“Better um, clear that up with Mikey, he called me about it.” Frank quickly typed out an apology. 

 

“Can I use your shower?” Gerard asked as he began to wash his mug.

 

“We can save water and shower together.” Frank said with a wink. They both ran off to the shower and needless to say, they weren’t gonna save any water.

 

~~

 

A half hour later, they were sitting on Frank’s bed in fluffy towels, just relaxing together. David Bowie played on Frank’s tiny speakers hooked up to Gerard’s phone. Frank was practically laying on Gerard and it made them both _quite_ sleepy. Gerard was barely thinking about his schedule. He had texted his mom saying he’d be over around dinnertime, they were only ~30min away. 

 

~~

 

Frank really likes to kiss Gerard on the forehead.

 

“I’m kissing your tiny freckles! They’re like tiny stars!”

 

Gerard likes to hold Frank’s hand, and feel the callouses. 

 

“Will I ever get to have a private concert by the one and only Frank Iero?”

 

“By all means, babe."

 

~~

 

“I wanna get dressed hold up.” Gerard walked over and grabbed some clothes out of his duffle. Frank started at the way his collarbones protruded out. The way the muscles in his back tightened when he stretched. 

 

“Do you wanna, like, go eat dinner at my mom’s place tonight? And then like, stay over?” Gerard had turned to face him and he spit out all these words. He felt like he was in highs school, asking out some random girl on a date as a dare. When in reality, he was an adult, asking out another adult, to sleep over at his parent’s house, while wearing a fluffy towel with duck’s on it. It’s not like this was Frank’s first time in the Way household, so it wouldn’t be too bad.

 

“doUBLE SLEEPOVER!” Frank leaped off the bed, his towel flying off in the process. He flung open his drawers and threw on the first shirt he saw. He put on some boxers and picked up a pair of jeans sitting by his bed. and walked over to the closet and pulled out { _his sexuality}_ a duffel bag. Frank basically repeated Gerard’s packing process in two minutes. Gerard sat on the bed and watched him. Gerard focused on the way Frank’s hands gripped the straps of his bag. The way his arms tensed up when he bent down. The way his eyes shone when he stood under the big lamp in his room.

 

“Ready to go?” Gerard asked while Frank was texting his friend James (because _someone_ needed to watch Frank’s dog).

 

“You bet!” Frank slid his phone into his pocket and exclaimed. Gerard picked up his duffel and they both walked to the kitchen. Gerard slipped on his Converse, Frank locked the door, and they were off…

 

~~

 

About thirty minutes later, they pulled up at Gerard’s old home. Nostalgia filled the boys’ heads. _{Memories of fucking Mikey filled Frank’s head.}_  Gerard pulled out his keys and opened the door. 

 

“Mom! We’re here!” Gerard screamed through the house. 

 

The only thing you could hear was Donna running through the house, she became the happiest mother in the world. 

 

“Gerard! Ah, you’ve grown!” She ruffled his hair and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

 

“Mommmm, you saw me a couple weeks ago.” Gerard whined. Frank stood awkwardly by the door.

 

“Frank. Iero. Give me a hug, I haven’t see you in ages!” Donna kissed him on the cheek.

 

“Hi Donna, long time no see!” Frank flashed one of his award winning smiles.

 

“Say hi to Mikey and Pete, they’re in the basement.” Donna ushered them out of the foyer. They took off their shoes and walked down to the basement.

 

“whAT’S UP BITCHES?” Gerard yelled. He gave Mikey a high five that probably hurt like hell, as the slapping sound was probably heard in Indonesia. He walked over and gave Pete a fist bump. They were laying on top of each other, watching E.T. It was a very sad scene.

 

“Hey Gerard are you still a schedule slut?” Mikey asked. Pete was full on sobbing in the background.

 

“Do you still fuck in family restaurants?” Gerard threw shade so hard. 

 

“OOooooH slay, Gerard!” Frank high-fives him. 

 

“Mikes, any reason you’re watching E.T.?” Frank asked while pointing to the screen. Instead of a horror movie or something, E.T. was on and the two boys were devoting their full attention to it. 

 

Pete spoke up, wiping his eyes, “We wanted to stop sinning, soooo we put on E.T. because if you fuck to E.T. it gets really fucking weird and ruins it for you. We basically just trying to not be hoes for once.” Mikey nodded along as if he was saying “True, yes, 100% true.”

 

“Imagine E.T. RPGs like smut and all…” Gerard mumbled to himself. Frank pretended not to hear, but burst out laughing anyway.

 

“Scooch over, Mikey.” Frank tried pushing Mikey over, but it was no use because Pete was on top on Mikey. 

 

“Ugh.” Frank gave up and sat criss-cross applesauce on the floor. Pete and Mikey started making out on the couch.

 

“Ugh, we’re leaving, lets go, Frank.”

 

~~

 

They walked upstairs to Gerard’s old bedroom. It was still decorated the same. Posters covered every wall. Comics were in a huge pile in one corner of the room. CDs and Vinys were stacked in another corner. Frank was never allowed in here in high school.

 

Before Frank had the chance to look around, Gerard pushed Frank onto the bed, connecting their lips. He tugged at Frank’s shirt, asking for consent to take it off. Frank nodded and Gerard took off his own shirt. They continued making out for many minutes afterwards.

 

“I’ll be right back, I’m thirsty, I’ll grab you a soda.” When Gerard stood up, a piece of paper fell out of his pocket.

 

Frank picked up the paper. 

 

**Reasons Why I Love Frank**

  1. His voice
  2. His style
  3. His heart
  4. (His dick)
  5. His hands
  6. His cuddling skills
  7. His music taste
  8. His movie choices
  9. His comfy sheets
  10. His welcoming arms
  11. His cuddly body
  12. His car
  13. His 



 

It stopped at 13. Frank heard Gerard coming up the stairs and he quickly folded the paper back up.

 

Gerard handed Frank a soda.

 

“Shall we pick up where we left off?"


	10. I'm Going To Hell For This Chapter

Gerard and Frank were lucky that no one decided to question the loud moans and groans and screams coming from Gerard's room. 

 

However, they did try to conceal the very disturbing noises coming from each of them, so no one could blame them for trying. Besides, Gerard told himself that he wouldn't let the sex go past five o'clock. And, true to his word, they didn't. The sex ended conveniently two minutes before the hour, which gave Frank and Gerard enough time to clean off and try and get themselves to not look like sex in human form { _well they are but let's pretend that they're not for now for the sake of story transition okay?_ }, which took all of one minute. The last minute was spent straightening the room and throwing the condoms and lube into a suitcase and scrambling to get back downstairs.

 

However, before Gerard could reach the end of the hallway before turning down the stairs, Frank made a rash decision to pull Gerard into the upstairs bathroom, which was a product of Donna's intense cleaning habits. From years of being untouched by a soul { _actually Pete and Mikey fucked in there a lot_ }, the place was sparkling, besides the few odd stains on the wall { _cough cough_ }. Frank slammed the door behind him and locked it, and quickly turned around to shove Gerard against the counter.

 

To say that Gerard was scared for his life would be an understatement. Had Frank not found Gerard's mouth with his own and shut him up by making out with him against the bathroom counter, he would probably scream. 

 

When Frank pulled away to take a breath, Gerard couldn't find the voice to ask why the fuck Frank pulled him into the bathroom to make out with him. But he didn't have to, because Frank awkwardly twiddled his thumbs for a few seconds and then said, "I... I read your list." Of course Gerard was confused, because not only was he a bit { _don't fucking lie Gee_ } of a schedule whore, but he was also a major list hoe. Lists helped him to compress his "to-do's" into a smaller and more manageable portion of shit. 

 

"Which one? I have a shit ton," Gerard choked out, and Frank chuckled. "The one about what you like about me, silly," Frank replied almost seductively, pressing Gerard back against the counter, who swallowed hard and blinked.

 

Frank looked up towards the ceiling, and then nodded. "Well, I have a list. What I like about you," he announced, and Gerard could've sworn he fainted at that moment. Swooned. 

 

"I like the way you laugh," Frank commented, kissing Gerard softly and pulling back immediately. "I like your lips and your tiny teeth. I like your smile and the way you hold your bottom lip between your teeth when you read or type or draw. I like the way your eyes light up whenever you get an idea," Frank whispered, toying with the hem of Gerard's shirt, "And I like our conversations, and the way my hand falls to yours, the way our bodies fit together perfectly. I like the way we cuddle and make out to stupid movies, and the way you hug me and talk to me. I love your dick, heaven knows that. I love the way you blow me when I don't even ask. I love it how you're always up for swapping position, even when I think I'm a top { _you are bebe don't let Bella corrupt you_ }. I love that we took those pictures and didn't really even delete them after. Most of all..."

 

Gerard was nearly crying at this point. He was a fucking mess, and it was all Frank's fault. "No, stop," Gerard mumbled helplessly, tangling his fingers with Frank's. Frank smirked and finished, "I love you. Most of all, I just love you. You, your artistic abilities, your personality."

 

And that did it for Gerard. He was all giggles and hugs in that moment, and Frank was fucking giddy. After that sentimental moment, Frank pulled away and grinned. "Now let me blow you."

 

~

 

"Mom, I do not need 'fattening up'. I eat like a normal human being, and just because I don't live under your roof anymore doesn't mean I don't eat at all!" Gerard protested as Donna spooned a third serving of lasagna onto his plate. He was already suffering from a sore ass, so the upset stomach was just too much. 

 

Donna huffed at Gerard, but didn't do anything about the extra food. She set the dish back down and sat down again, taking a sip of wine { _we all aspire to be at a level of parenting where we can just drink wine in front of the childs_ }. "You're so stubborn, Gerard. Always were," Donna spit at him, rolling her eyes. Frank raised an eyebrow, to which she responded, "Oh, yeah. He refused to do anything. Wouldn't leave his room, wouldn't make friends..." Gerard slammed his fork down onto his plate, causing everyone to flinch { _and also startled Mikey enough to wear he had to remove his hand from Pete's dick for just a moment, because he was giving his newest boyfriend a handjob under the table_ }. 

 

"Gerard," Donna said in a warning tone, and Frank put a hand on Gerard's thigh. "I had some mad fucked issued," Gerard muttered, and apologized for disturbing Pete and Mikey. Now that all the eyes were on the couple, Gerard took a shaky breath and picked at his food with his fork. Frank casually peaked underneath the table as Donna told the two off, and smirked. Donna was sitting at the head of the table, with Gerard and Frank on one side, and Pete and Mikey on the other. 

 

Since Frank was feeling extra horny { _as usual, let's just be honest_ }, his hand wandered towards Gerard's pants. When he found what he was looking for, Gerard's eyes nearly popped out of his head. He choked on the mouthful of lasagna he had in his mouth and received several concerned looks. He tried to warn Frank to stop, but miserably failed, because Frank took the pleading look as a sign to continue palming Gerard through his jeans. 

 

"You are all going to hell, shit," Donna joked, giggling and standing up, "Giving each other handjobs and shit under the table, thinkin' I don't see it." 

 

{ _Well fuck, Donna, can't say I disagree. Much sin, oh fuck_ }

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short as fuck chapter, but oh well! Also, officially ungrounded.
> 
> xoromanticizingchemicals


	11. Pete and Mikey Fuck In Every Room In The House...Well...Attempt To

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As a recap, I'll explain what everyone looks like.  
> Gerard: Danger Days Era  
> Frank: Revenge Era  
> Mikey & Pete: 2005 Warped Tour

Gerard Way was many things, but a scaredy cat was not one of those things.

 

Haha sarcasm. Gerard Way was a huge scaredy cat. 

~

_"You are all going to hell, shit," Donna joked, giggling and standing up, "Giving each other handjobs and shit under the table, thinkin' I don't see it."_  Donna said, laughing loudly. She stood up and sashayed out of the dining room, trying to make a statement that she didn’t give a fuck about her kids’ weird sexual habits as long as they keep it under control. Donna Way: the coolest mom. 

“Well, we will be leaving.” Gerard zipped up his pants under the table, then stood up and grabbed Frank’s hand. They walked right on our of the dining room and they left Pete and Mikey to do whatever the hell they want. Probably try and fuck in every single room around the house.

“Pete, I have a great idea?” Mikey said, while vigorously tapping Pete on the shoulder. Pete rolled his eyes, Mikey always had _fantastic_ ideas that usually got them banned from restaurants, or stores, etc. 

“We can’t go fuck in McDonalds, I’m too tired to drive and you’re a shit driver, Mikey.” Pete said.

“Lets see if I can get you off or you get me off in every single room in this house.” Mikey winked at Pete as he spoke. Pete thought about the plan, then decided to go along with it.

“Fantastic idea, Michael. Hashtag YOLO.” Mikey let Pete unzip his pants and resume their thing. One room down, many more to go.

~

Gerard and weather are two things that do not mix. Put Gerard and a thunderstorm together, and all hell breaks loose. Frank didn’t know this yet, but he’d find out in a little bit. 

Gerard and Frank were playing Evil Apples on their phone with Lindsey _{for anyone who doesn’t know what that is, it’s the app version of Cards Against Humanity}_. Gerard was smoking Frank’s ass, but Lindsey beat them both. She texted them “HAHA BOW DOWN BITCHES TO QUEEN LYNZ”. The two laughed and turned on Gerard’s stereo. David Bowie’s voice filled the room. 

Everything was calm. The two boys were laying in bed holding hands, until Gerard’s ears heard the sound of rain. Frank hadn’t known Gerard long enough to know about Gerard’s huge fear of severe weather { _yes I turned Gerard into me shhh it’s my story}._ The sound of lightning striking in the distance caused Gerard’s heart to race, and tears to form in his eyes. Frank registered what was going on and tried to console the older man. Gerard began to shake a little bit and started crying harder as the sound got louder. 

_“_ Shh, Gerard, baby, you’re gonna be okay, I’m gonna protect you.” Frank rubbed circles into Gerard’s back and held him tightly. The sound of rain against the windows scared Gerard even more. He shrunk down into frank’s arms and tried to hide. He popped back up after hearing Frank’s statement.

“Your tiny ass figure? As if!” Gerard laughed a little bit as tears continued streaming down his face. Rain hit the windows, causing loud sounds to echo in Gerard’s room. The sound of tree branches slapping against the windows grew louder and louder.

“I can try my best defending you, after years of playing on stage, I have some sort of strength in my arms.” Thunder caused the tiny house to shake and Gerard buried his face in Frank’s shoulder.

“Tell me something, I need some distraction. I need to hear your voice.” Gerard mumbled into Frank’s shoulder.

“I’ll tell you some more things I love about you. I love the way you dance, it’s just so, interesting.” Frank heard a little laugh come out of Gerard.

“I like it when you kiss me, because you’re a better kisser { _than mikey}_ than anyone I’ve dated. I like the way you get hair out of your face, by whipping it around. I like the way you silently sing along to songs in the car, it’s so cute hearing you sing.” 

Gerard popped his head up and looked Frank in the eye, “Maybe, I’ll sing for you another day.” The sound of lightning nearby caused Gerard to shrink down into Frank’s arms. 

“I’d like that a lot. Um, let’s see, I really like your ass.” Gerard cracked up. When Gerard looked up, Frank wiped the tears from the boy’s eyes and kissed his temple.

“I wanna say some thing I like about you.” Gerard rubbed his eyes and cleared his throat. He was still a bit off-ease. 

“Go ahead.” 

“I love how committed you are to guitar, like in your videos on YouTube, I can just see the passion in your eyes. And I like hearing your little laugh. And I like your eyebrows like damn. I love watching you listen to music, because you get so into it, and I love-“ Frank cut Gerard off with his lips. The warmth of Frank’s mouth soothed Gerard and instantly calmed him. He stopped shaking and melted into the kiss. Gerard threw his arms around Frank’s neck and leaned into him, practically knocking him off the bed. Frank smiled into the kiss. Frank shifted Gerard’s body so he wouldn’t fall onto the floor, and pushed him down against the pillow. He straddled Gerard and started to suck hickies into his neck. Frank take Gerard's shirt off, after asking for consent of course, when the door bust open.

“Um, we’re gonna need this room for a little bit.” Pete said while Mikey covered his eyes at the sight of Frank making out with his brother.

“No way, fuck off, Pete.” Gerard yelled. Pete closed the door after mumbling to Mikey that they had to move on to the next room for their ‘game’. 

Frank took his own shirt off and laid against Gerard. It was Gerard’s turn to mark Frank up. He liked giving Frank hickies high up on his neck, so everyone knew Frank was getting laid and he was t a k e n. Gerard reconnected their lips and slid his tongue over Frank’s bottom lip, asking for permission to let him in. Frank obeyed and open his mouth. Their tongues were practically playing tug of war and their lips were still moving. A moan escaped Frank’s lips and it made Gerard’s dick pulse. After a couple more minutes of this, Gerard pulled apart.

“Can we stay like this, I like relaxing with you a lot. You’re really comfy.” Gerard asked.

“Of course, Gee.” Gerard snuggled up to Frank. 

“Frankie?”

“Yes, Gee?”

“I know I’ve known you for like a week, but I, I, I love you.” Gerard closed his eyes, as if Frank was to get up and leave or worse, hit him. 

“I love you too, Gerard.” And that was the last thing said before the two boys fell asleep. David Bowie continued playing throughout the night. At least the two couldn’t hear Mikey getting Pete off in the bathroom.

~

“I’m tired, Mikes.” They only made it to the 4th room. 

“Let’s get to bed.” Mikey said. He undressed Pete, then undressed himself and they laid down in Mikey’s bed. Mikey removed his glasses _{i am such a slut for 2004-2005 aka pre laserix surgery mikey with his dorky lil glasses so pretend he has them, pete looks like he did in Warped Tour 2005, basically just them in 2005 #petekeywasreal }_

“I love your Star Wars covers, they make me happy.” Pete said as he held up the covers. Mikey laughed quietly.

“I love you, you make me happy.” Mikey kissed Pete on the forehead. He connected their hands underneath the covers, and gripped Pete’s hand tightly.

“I love you too, Mikes.” Pete pressed his forehead to Mikey.

“Never let me go?” Mikey asked.

“I’ll never let you go.” Pete kissed Mikey once more, then closed his eyes, and fell asleep. Next to Mikey  _{mikEYFUCKINGWAY}._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i was so fucking tempted to have mikey say "thanks pete" at the end but alas i made them fall asleep
> 
> if ya'll don't know, me, bella, i write the ODD chapters and faith, the fucking amazing writer, writes all the EVEN chapters


	12. Gerard Fucks Up a Bowl and Donna Way is Mother Goals

Donna was very proud of both of her boys for maintaining "healthy" { _air quotes intended_ } relationships, even if they were with guys. She of course had gone through many partners in her younger years, both male and female, though she never really had an actual emotional connection with any of them. She pretty much used them all for sex, because she was shady as fuck and just drank wine and talked on the phone half the time anyways. You can learn a fuck of a lot from Korean soap operas.

 

She loved her sons dearly, to the point where she gave literally zero fucks when she overheard Pete and Mikey's plan to get each other off in every room. She even listened for the satisfaction of both, not in a pedophilic way or anything { _Donna fucking Way was many things, but not a pedophile by any means_ }, but because she was just overjoyed by the fact that both of her boys had a man both loved and were willing to do many things with. She loved that. She loved the thought of her boys being happy and getting married and settling down with a family, nearby of course. Because so help her, if either Gerard or Mikey moved over a thousand miles away from her, she'd rip both their dicks off and make sure that they'd never fuck their boyfriends ever again.

 

Because she's Donna Way. 

 

"Ma, could I run out to the store real quick?" Gerard asked suddenly, interrupting Donna's content thoughts. She whipped around and nearly took Gerard's eye out with a butter knife that she was working on cleaning off, which made Gerard scream and throw himself backwards, which made him crash into a side table, which resulted in the knocking over of a large glass bowl. It fell to the ground and, to Donna's horror, broke into a thousand small pieces, and then the whole house went silent besides the running of the sink.

 

Gerard, overcome with shock, tried to apologize and attempted to lean over and to put the bowl back together { _seriously Gerard WTF_ }, but to no avail. It was broken.

 

Now, Donna gave no shits about this bowl. In fact, it was just some shitty-ass bowl she had bought from Goodwill a few years back for like five dollars, but she enjoyed giving Gerard a scare. So, the little fuck Donna Way is, she mocked surprise and hurt, which convinced Gerard of her anguish. "I... I'm so fucking sorry, oh my God, mom, I'm... Please don't be mad at me, it was just an accident... I can replace it, I'll buy a new one!" he choked out, waving his hands wildly and looking anywhere except for his mother.

 

Donna just looked at him sternly, lips pursed and arms crossed. "Fucking right you will. What else do you need from the store?" she croaked, clearing her throat and biting back a giggle as Gerard's face turned as red as the bowl he had just broken. 

 

"Pete and Mikes... Well, I mean, all of us... We're running out of certain _supplies_ , y'know, and, umm," Gerard managed to stutter, embarrassed as hell. Donna felt as though she was about to die, the laughter nearly bursting out of her as she drew a steadying breath. "Are you asking for lube or condoms or something? Because there's a sex store like right next to the Goodwill and the furniture store in the Plaza," she asked knowingly, and Gerard visibly relaxed a bit. 

 

He kiss his mother on the forehead and stepped around the mess of glass, promising to pick up the mess as soon as he returned. It wasn't until Gerard had actually left the house and shut the door did Donna actually lose her shit, cackling until her sides ached. 

 

She was literally the spawn of the fucking devil, purposely causing her son panic. Donna Way is definitely mother goals.

 

~

 

Frank could hear Donna laughing even over Gerard talking his ear off through the phone and the mild crackling of the record player in the background. 

 

"And then she looked at me and knew exactly what I wanted to get. Speaking of, what are your opinions on flavored lube? I honestly hate it, but they have some pretty cool lube over here," Gerard was saying, though Frank was honestly more occupied with his own thoughts. He was silent for a few moments, considering what Gerard had said, and then replied, "They're gross, yeah. Especially strawberry," he cringed a bit. "But anyways, what about those couple ones? The fire and ice shit? Sounds like some weird shit they'd be into."

 

Gerard considered this and scanned the selection of lubricant lining the shelves of the sex store, ignoring the glares of the sales clerk peeping around the corner at him. To him, it seemed like Frank wasn't really paying attention, but that was okay. He pulled the phone away from his ear and checked the time again, noticing that it was a bit past nine. He had about fifteen minutes to choose something and to get home. 

 

"You're right," he admitted, holding the phone back up to his ear and reaching for a box labeled " _Fire and Ice: Ultimate Couple's Lubricant_ ", "Anyways, but for us? We're running out too. How about some normal stuff? And I'll get surprise for you." He smirked and remembered the display of laced thongs he had seen near the front of the store, and quickly grabbed the house brand of lube off the shelf. Frank giggled dirtily from the other end and sighed happily. "We're at your mom's house and all you wanna do is fuck. I bet you want my cock in your ass, filling you up, leaking... You're such a fucking slut for me, aren't you?" Frank teased, and Gerard moaned. He fucking _moaned_. In the middle of a store. 

 

He looked down at his pants and sighed angrily, because he was already getting a fucking hard-on from Frank just teasing him { _okay I suck at the dirty talk so let's just pretend that Frank said it like super seductively okay?_ }. "Frank," he whispered harshly, attempting to calm himself down, "Shut the fuck up. I'm gonna get a boner." 

 

However, Frank took this warning as an invitation to continue. "You want me to suck you off when you get home? I bet—" 

 

And with that, Gerard couldn't take any more of it. He hung up on Frank and awkwardly attempted to cover the growing boner with the two small boxes he was holding. His self-appointed stalker definitely noticed the struggle as Gerard limped around the store, grabbing his surprise off of the shelf and holding it up to his waist. Oh yeah, Frank would definitely like this.

 

Once he had all of his purchases in hand, with only minutes to spare, Gerard checked out the items with the creepy salesman, Alex. The man gave Gerard the most judgmental of looks as he slid the items across the scanner. "Havin' a fun night tonight?" he finally asked, and Gerard wanted to crawl into a hole. He was at a no-judge, no-kink shaming place. 

 

"Umm, y-yeah?" Gerard kind of asked, nervously holding out his credit card. Alex took his card with a knowing look on his face, and then drew it across the cash register. "Who's the lucky man? Who's Frank?" Alex asked with a very creepy smile, and Gerard went as pink as the dildos on display behind the counter. "My boyfriend," Gerard replied with just s bit of confidence leaking into his voice.

 

Alex smirked and handed Gerard his card back, and then put Gerard's purchases into a small black bag and handed him that as well. "You have a nice night, Gerard," Alex whispered, and Gerard was intent on getting the fuck out of there.

 

How did Alex know his name? Why was he acting so goddamn weird? 

 

~

 

Gerard got home before his deadline, and quickly scampered through the house and back up to his room. Before he could, though, he set the new bowl on the counter for his mother. It wasn't the same, but it matched its surroundings much better. 

 

"I'm home!" Gerard chimed once he reached his room, and he found Frank curled up with one of Gerard's old sketchbooks. So, he had done some snooping?

 

Frank flinched and practically threw the book across the room, yelling out apologies. "I didn't know," he blurted out, and looked at Gerard nervously, "Don't be mad!" Gerard simply shrugged and smiled, setting down the small black bag on the dresser. Frank eyed it, but didn't question it. "It's okay. You can look," Gerard affirmed, and Frank retrieved the drawing book as Gerard took out the lube he had bought for Pete and Mikey. He assumed that the two were in Mikey's room, as Frank had said something about hearing them walking around on while he and Gerard were on the phone. 

 

Gerard made his way towards Mikey's bedroom, and knocked twice before opening the door. There, he found Mikey { _his fucking brother, holy shit_ } giving Pete a handjob. "HOLY SHIT!" Gerard screamed, throwing the lube at them and getting the fuck out of there. That would permanently scar Gerard. Well, not really, but he definitely wasn't expecting that.

 

And Gerard hated unexpected things.


	13. Gerard Is A Schedule Whore, And At One Point, Was An Actual Whore

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i may have been sick, but i had to make up a ton of schoolwork. this is such a huge filler chapter my mind is all foggy and i have no clue where i want the story to go, sorry
> 
> um leave sorta prompts in the comments 
> 
> i went to TATINOF tonight that was cool that was ace i met one of my internet friends

It wasn’t until that night (or I guess, morning), when Gerard woke up spontaneously at 3am, how Gerard realized that he knew Alex. He woke up abruptly when he realized it. He slept with Alex three years ago. 

 

Back in college, Gerard slept around quite a bit. He would go to parties, get really drunk (or high, or both) and sleep with whatever human was willing. 100% no strings attached. He never called back, never stayed in touch (not like he ever asked for their phone number), they were purely hook ups. Hell, he didn’t remember 80% of the people’s names. Gerard got scared. He remembered his last conversation with Alex. Was Alex _jealous?_ He did ask about Frank. He seemed really sketchy. Gerard replayed their conversation from the night before.

 

_"Who's the lucky man? Who's Frank?" Alex asked with a very creepy smile, and Gerard went as pink as the dildos on display behind the counter. "My boyfriend," Gerard replied with just a bit of confidence leaking into his voice._

 

Gerard turned over and debated waking up Frank. Frank looked so beautiful sleeping, his hair everywhere, his skin nice and smooth. Perfection. 

 

“It’s not that big of a deal, maybe it’s not even the same Alex. I doubt he even cares anymore, it’s been years. What does he even need from me? The answer is nothing. I’m gonna be okay, he could care less about my current love life. Why the fuck does he even care it’s honestly nothing! ” Gerard said to himself.

 

“Gerard, go to sleep.” Frank said in a groggy voice, while sitting up, rubbing his eyes. Gerard didn’t realize he had been thinking out loud _{ i’m thinking ouuuut loud Ed Sheehan slay me}._

 

“Sorry, babe. I just, um, realized, um, you know what? Never mind, I’ll go to sleep.” Gerard kissed Frank good night, then tried to go to sleep.

 

Needless to say, Alex creeped him the fuck out and he did not get back to sleep.

 

~

 

Gerard walked into the kitchen at 12pm, running on roughly two hours of sleep. To his surprise, everyone had basically just gotten up. The only difference, everyone slept fine and dandy { _i wake up fine and dandy but then by the time i find it handy}_ , whereas Gerard was a mess. Everyone (except for Donna) was watching TV in the living room. Donna was cleaning up dishes.

 

“Did you sleep well, Gerard.” She looked over and Gerard looked practically dead. He grunted in response.

 

“I shall take that as a no.” She continued loading the dishwasher.

 

“I need advice, Ma.” Gerard asked as he prepared himself toast for breakfast.

 

“Go ahead, I doubt I can help though.”

 

“Well, when I was in the, uh, _sex shop,_ ” he coughed to cover up the fact that he said that, “I might’ve seen someone I, um, _slept with_ a couple years ago, and I didn’t realize it for a couple hours, but then last night I had an ‘oh shit ! ‘ kind of moment and I feel super bad for not recognizing him, but he was creepy as fuck anyway.”

 

“Well, I think you should like, see what his deal is. Maybe, make him a little jealous that you have Frank. I don’t know, Gerard, I played hard to get twenty four-seven and now I am single.” 

 

~

 

Gerard called in sick to work, he had zero excuse, he just said he was contagious and would be in tomorrow. 

 

~

 

So Gerard was back at the sex shop, right next to Goodwill. Way to make him feel non kinky. This time, he brought Frank. For, you know, precautionary measures.

 

“Hey Gerard, how are you?” It was Alex. Gerard really studied his face, trying his best to remember more about him. He remembered nothing, Alex was just a quick fuck.

 

“I’m fine.” Gerard tried to stay as close as possible to Frank to show that he was taken, and to hide a bit because Alex really gave him the jitters.

 

“Hey, uh, Frank, can I talk to Gerard.” Alex asked in a sketchy tone. Gerard eyed Frank with a look of fear, and basically said with his eyes _DO NOT LEAVE ME !! PLEASE STAY !!_

 

“Yes, you can talk to him, right here, like you’re doing.” Frank tried to act all brave, and scary, and badass, but in reality, he was about 4’5 and had a red mohawk.

 

“You know what I mean. I’ll be quick, I promise.” Alex tried to sound as innocent as possible. Gerard squeezed Frank’s hand and whispered to him “It’s okay, but come back in two minutes”

 

“Hey Gerard, long time no see, remember me?” Alex winked at him and made a jerking off motion. 

 

“Yes.”

 

“Well, I was thinking, I remember you moaning ‘you’re the best i’ve ever had’ so I was wondering if maybe you wanted to test that again?” Alex raised his eyebrows.

 

“Hell no! Why would I leave Frank?” Gerard almost screamed. Alex tried to “shh” him. He leaned close into Gerard and basically whispered the next sentence.

 

“Because, he looks like bad news, I’m just trying to protect you, Gerard.” Alex reached out to touch Gerard’s shoulder. Gerard shook Alex's hand off of his body and stormed over to Frank. Frank put down the vibrator he had picked up. 

 

“We’re leaving!” He huffed out. He turned on his heel and practically yanked Frank out the door. He didn't look back at Alex and didn’t need to. He knew Alex was probably hella pissed off.

 

~

 

In the car, Gerard went from mad to sad. Frank kissed him on the forehead and turned up the radio.

 

“I  missed library day yesterday, ugh.” Gerard just remembered. If he had had his schedule, he would’ve remembered, He didn’t even get a chance to read his books this week because of Frank. 

 

“Once we get home, we gotta pack up, I have work tomorrow.” Gerard said a bit sassily. Alex had really pissed him off.

 

_“Because, he looks like bad news, I’m just trying to protect you, Gerard.”_ Played over and over in his head. It made him dizzy.

 

“Whatever you say, baby.” Frank kept focussing on the road, but he reached over and squeezed Gerard’s hand.

 

~

 

Gerard walked into the kitchen to grab a sods and found Mikey pushed up against the fridge by, yours truly, Pete Wentz.

 

“Ah! When are you guys not making out.” Gerard stomped out of the kitchen and up the stairs.

 

“Shut it, Gerard, they’re cute!” Donna yelled up the stairs.

 

~

 

Stupid Alex ruined his day. Gerard was on the phone with Lindsey, summarizing his weekend and especially the whole Alex business. 

 

Gerard was angrily packing up his bag, and Frank’s too, because who knew where he ran off to. He was practically screaming at this point, all this pent up anger really got to him. He didn’t know if he was sad or mad. 

 

Suddenly, Frank burst through the door with coffee in tow. 

 

“Gotta go, Lynz, love you!” Gerard hug up the phone and ran over and took one of the coffees. The aroma filled him up immediately. He smiled. 

 

“Thank you, Frank. This made my day.” He sat down on the bed to enjoy his drink. Frank sat down behind him and slid his arms around Gerard from the back, holding him tight.

 

“I wanna hold you tightly all night and never let go.” Frank whispered into Gerard’s ear. “I wanna always whisper into your ear how beautiful you are.” Gerard giggled. He turned around and kissed Frank.

 

“That sounds like a fantastic plan.”

 

~

 

The car ride home was uneventful. Frank dropped him off at his house first. Except, they wouldn’t stop making out.

 

“Agh, Frank, I gotta go home. Ray probably thought I ran away by now.” He opened the car door and closed it. He grabbed his bag out of the back and blew Frank one more kiss.

 

He forgot that Frank had his favorite hoodie on.

 

Honestly, he didn’t care. It looked better on Frank anyway.

 

~

 

Gerard walked inside and ignored Ray’s calls. He walked straight to his room and took out his schedule. He had to make time for Grey’s since he didn’t even get to watch it last week. He also had to make time to work, get groceries this week, read the book for book club, and read the other few books he checked out. He threw the schedule at the wall, it tore one of his posters he had hanging up. He watched it fall to the floor.

 

Who knew relationships could be so time consuming?


	14. Alex is Literally a Stalker

Though it took a while, Gerard finished a brand new, must-follow schedule. If he didn't follow this one, then he'd be late for work, would forget to schedule his dentist appointment (he still hasn't gotten his wisdom teeth pulled), and he'd probably forget to eat. However busy and full the day was, Gerard made sure to make at least an hour of time completely dedicated to Frank. Whether it be a date or a cuddle session, he made the time.

 

"Why do you like schedules so much?" Ray asked quietly from the door, and Gerard quickly turned around at the sudden voice. Honestly, he had forgotten that Ray also lived here. "Why?" Gerard repeated, dazed, and Ray nodded. 

 

The question, why _did_ Gerard like schedules so much? He never thought about this before, but then looked around his room. Everything had a place, an order. He kept it as clean as he possibly could, and even dedicated an hour every damn day to cleaning up the apartment, which was something Ray never took the liberty to do. Did he maybe have OCD? _No_ , he told himself, _you just enjoy having things in a certain order_. Then, he remembered how frantic his high school life was, where assignment after assignment and project after project became far too much, and everything stacked up, and he never had a plan or a schedule. This led to the failure of many classes, and so, he just dropped out. 

 

"I suppose it was my past. Never was coordinated, you know? I never made plans. It was day after day of chaos and discord. Surely you'd understand?" Gerard replied, though he could care less about how much Ray could or could not relate to him. Ray scratched his stubble and looked past Gerard and at a few of the posters on the wall. Gerard had five against the far wall, all lined up, beneath two signed vinyl records. He had the other posters tacked up against the other walls nearly as well. He also had a whiteboard above the desk, which he would write dates on, plans, and tape invitations and stuff to. 

 

Without a response, Ray left the room. _Probably to find food_ , Gerard thought randomly, and scanned his new schedule. It was beautiful; Gerard had color-coded the page, from most important to least important. For the least important ones, he could easily reschedule or just not go. Book Club was one of the unimportant ones. However, he would still go, as long as the schedule worked out. A priority was work, of course, as well as was cleaning the house and spending time with Frank. Those ones were written in red pen. In orange, those events of less importance, such as going to the grocery store or picking up coffee (Gerard needed his coffee) were written on the page. And the green items, like Book Club and recording Thursday's episode of Grey's Anatomy, were things that he could easily just not do, or, if he needed to, he could reschedule these. 

 

"You are so productive," he commented to himself, tapping the page twice. He did feel quite accomplished. He flipped through the rest of the planner, finding his history of schedules. Each had the same code of colors, and every event was crossed out neatly. On the side bars, he wrote notes or phone numbers or email addresses of whatever he needed to. 

 

Gerard looked over the new schedule one more time, and then nodded. He had to go back to work tomorrow, because he had already taken off enough time. Gerard closed the planner, slid it back into his tote, and turned off the desk lamp, darkness leaking into the room. The only light came from the door and from the pitiful window that Gerard had thought several times of just getting rid of. It was probably as big as Ray's head (including his hair), and the thought terrified Gerard for some reason. If Ray AND his fro could fit through that window, then so could a large bird or a mass murderer. 

 

He cringed at the thought and forced himself out of his chair, and stretched a bit before he walked over to his bed. Gerard checked the time on his phone, but was greeted with many texts from Frank.

 

_"Hey G, love youuuuu..."_

 

_"Gee, please answer me agh I really need you!"_

 

_"LOVE MEEEEEEE!!!"_

 

_"Did you fall asleep? It's only like 10."_

 

_"Ugh Gerard Arthur Way get your ass up and text your boyfriend!"_

_"I will literally spam your phone with seductive pictures..."_

 

_"Okay final warning!"_

 

Attached to the texts were four files, so Gerard unlocked his phone curiously to look at them. The first was a picture of Frank making the all too common "duck face", with his butt sticking out in exaggeration and his free hand on his bent knees. Gerard laughed and scrolled down a bit, to a picture of Frank putting a hand on his hip awkwardly and making a "shame on you" face. The next picture was of Frank hanging upside down on his bed, sticking his tongue out. 

 

And the last picture was of Frank's dick.

 

Gerard's eyes nearly popped out of his head at the last one, as he quickly blinked and swallowed hard. _Okay then_ , he thought, though he was totally content with this picture. In fact, he was getting hard just remembering the things that that penis could do. 

 

He refused to waste time masturbating, so he replied to Frank with a simple _I'm going to sleep, you sexy bastard. See you tomorrow... Come over to my place at seven?_ Then, he set the phone back down on the nightstand and pulled the covers over his body.

 

And then he fell asleep, the last thing on his mind the events of the past week.

 

~

 

_-Mikey and Pete-_

 

"I think that you two should just live here for the next few months. Mikes, you're hardly able to pay rent most months, and Pete, you're a hazard to yourself," Donna told the lovers one morning as they shoved scrambled eggs down their throat and held hands under the table. Pete glared at Donna defensively, while Mikey considered the offer. It was true, he did struggle to pay rent. Besides, Donna was an amazing cook and source for his needs. Hell, if he wanted two bottles of vodka, she'd give him them without a second thought. 

 

Donna pulled out the sugar and held it up to them, and Mikey nodded. She passed him the sugar and he stirred three spoonfuls into his coffee. "You're disgusting, all of you," Pete spat, sipping from his orange juice. For some godforsaken reason, Pete had suddenly decided yesterday morning that he no longer enjoyed coffee. 

 

"Should we even start on your nasty habits?" Donna shot back, and suddenly, a knock sounded from the door. It startled everyone, and Pete even knocked his orange juice all over his pants. With a choice of words and and scream, Pete stood up and ran to the bathroom, while Mikey stood up and went to answer the door. He unlocked the several locks and cracked it open a bit, peering through the door. On the step was a man who looked to be in his thirties, wearing bright green skinny jeans and an oversized purple sweater. "Did anyone order a Barney impersonator?" Mikey asked sarcastically back into the house, and the man laughed tightly. 

 

Mikey looked back at the guy, who looked vaguely familiar. Where had he seen him before? "And you are..." Mikey asked bluntly, to which the reply was, "I'm Alex."

 

~

 

- _Gerard_ -

 

"Oh, cry my a river," Gerard muttered under his breath as a fellow employee rambled on and on about his problems with his girlfriend. He didn't even know the guy's name, but by reading the name tag, he learned this guy to be Brendon. "And she–" Brendon was saying, before someone else interrupted him. Gerard took that split second to dart off, check the clock, and collect his belongings. His work day was finally over, and he had one whole hour to go to the library and to do whatever the fuck he wanted to do.

 

He took his time in walking down the street, when all of a sudden, his phone started ringing. Gerard took the phone out of his pocket, and saw that Mikey was calling him. Half a mind told him to just ignore the call, but for some reason, he felt like he had to answer it. "What?" he asked loudly, as the people walking by him were very loud. 

 

Mikey, on the other end, took a deep breath. Time to rant. "Gerard, do you know a guy named Alex?" he asked quickly, and Gerard nearly choked. "Y-Yeah," he replied nervously, suddenly becoming very nauseous. No, not right now. Now was not the time. 

 

"He came over to Donna's house today, and he asked to come in. So I let him in, assuming that maybe he was one of Pete's friends. But no. He asked where _you_ were, Gee. And so I thought that maybe he was your friend or something. So I said that you were back at your apartment, and then I remembered where I had seen him. He works at the sex store, doesn't he? Anyways, so I tried to tell him to go away and that you had a boyfriend and you didn't like him. But then he said that he was your boyfriend and that you had dumped Frank. Is that true?" Mikey spewed, taking literally zero breaths in his explanation. 

 

Gerard was at a loss for words. He had stopped walking altogether. What. The. Fuck. "No!" he practically screamed, regretting every one-night stand in school, "Alex was a quick and drunk fuck! He is literally obsessed with me! How did he find out where we were?" Mikey sighed and shrugged, but replied, "I dunno. But you need to be careful. I don't know how far he'll go to find you." 

 

And with that, Gerard was hanging up and storming towards the library. He had to talk to Lindsey about this shit.


	15. Alex Is A Much Bigger Problem Than Anyone Guessed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: this chapter might be a lil scary bc alex fucking alex the stalker poor gerard poor mikey poor frank just forewarning, it's pretty angsty

Gerard burst into the library. The door flew and hit the wall. Gerard didn’t care because the only person in the lobby/return area was Lindsey. Her eyes widened when she she saw how pissed off Gerard was. 

 

“Woah, Gerard, what’s up dude? You kinda gotta chill with the door though, if the manager sees you he’ll assume you’re drunk and kick you out.”

 

“I. Need. To. Talk. To. You.” He hissed out. Lindsey looked around to make sure no one was listening. 

 

“I have a break in thirty minutes, we can go to Starbucks.”

 

“Good. Also, can I renew these books? I know they’re not due for like 6 more days, but with my new schedule, I know I won’t have that much time to read them this week."

 

Gerard fumed around the library for thirty minutes. He got some questioning looks, that’s for sure. He put in his earbuds in response, and cranked up the music. 

 

~

 

“What do you mean he showed up at your house?!” Lindsey said, a bit too loud. Gerard had just caught her up on all the drama that happened in his mother’s household. 

 

“I don’t know! Mikey said he showed up and said that I had dumped Frank for him!” Gerard ranted. He thought about the creepy look Alex had in his eyes at the shop. Gerard shrunk down in his seat.

 

“Does he know where you live, like, right now?” Lindsey whispered and her eyes darted around the room, as if Alex was somewhere inside the coffeeshop. 

 

“God, I hope not.” Gerard said while sipping his coffee. It tasted bad because of the bad thoughts in his head. _What if Alex found his house? What if he saw him at the library or at the grocery store or in Starbucks or with Frank. What if he caught Frank_ _alone?_ _What would he do to Frank. I have to call Frank._

 

“Well?” Lindsey asked, “What do you plan on doing?” She was not the best at stalker situations obviously. 

 

“I don’t know, I’m really scared. What if he hurts Frank or something.” Gerard’s voice got caught in his throat. He hasn’t fully considered Frank until now. Alex knew who Frank was, he’d seen him numerous times with Gerard.

 

“What did you say his name was?” Lindsey questioned. 

 

“Alex, Alex Gaskarth. He was just a quick fuck, why does he care so much, it’s been three fucking years what does he want with me?” Gerard shouted. { _it’s been ten fucking years since i’ve been seeing your face}._

 

“Send me a picture and I’ll keep a look out, if I see him, I’ll let him know to stay away.” Lindsey was pretty strong. When they went to clubs, she was usually the one beating up people and getting the two of them kicked out. 

 

“What if he like starts stalking me and I go to bed tonight and he’s in my house?” Gerard was paranoid.It made his coffee taste old and bitter. He pondered throwing it out, but he needed something to do with his hands. They were shaking a little bit. He noticed that they were, and he gripped the cup tighter.

 

_“_ Then like, call 911 or some shit like that.” Lindsey suggested.

 

“What if he goes to Frank’s house? I don’t know how he’d find it, but he found my mother’s house just fine.” Gerard avowed.

 

“You should warn Frank, or you know, give him a heads up.” Lindsey advised him.

 

“Fantastic idea, I gotta go tell Frank.” Gerard pulled out his wallet and thrust a crumpled up $5 bill to Lindsey to pay her back for the coffee she bought him. 

 

“Bye Gerard, stay safe!” Lindsey waved as she sipped her coffee. 

 

“Thanks Lynz! Love you!” And with that, he ran out of the store and to his car.

 

~~

 

Gerard was in the car to Frank’s house when he got an unknown call. He freaked out. Tears began to form in his eyes. _I know it! I know it’s fucking Alex._  He flung his phone into the backseat. He heard the little CHIME thirty seconds later meaning someone had left him a voicemail. He sped up the car. _Oh fuck what if he’s in the car behind me what if he got Ray what if he got Mom what if he even got Pete what does he want with me!_

 

When Frank opened the door, Gerard leapt into his arms, beginning to cry. He was so afraid. For himself. For his family. For Frank and his friends. He just stood there in Frank’s arms, tears getting all over the smaller boy’s shirt. 

 

“Gerard, babe, what’s wrong?” Gerard didn’t answer Frank. Frank held him while he cried into his shoulder. Gerard had a couple inches on Frank, so leaning on Frank’s shoulder hurt Gerard’s neck a little bit. 

 

“Gerard, can you tell me what’s wrong so I can help fix it?” Frank asked softly. Gerard took a breath in and for the second time this morning, he explained the Alex drama.

 

“That motherfucker.” Frank grumbled when Gerard finished his story about ten minutes later. He was infuriated. How dare someone stalk Gerard and scare him half to death.

 

“What, do, I, do?” Gerard said in between sobs. Frank rubbed his back. 

 

“I don’t know. I just don’t know.” Frank confessed. Gerard rubbed his eyes and decided to change the subject. 

 

“Can you come with me to my dentist appointment? I gotta get my wisdoms out and I need someone to take me home because I’ll be high as fuck. I don’t really wanna take my mom because I don’t wanna accidentally start talking about sucking dick in the car. I’m sure she won’t mind, but she’ll tell my entire family.”

 

“Of course. Now, what do you want for dinner?”

 

~

 

Frank drove him home around 7. He made a promise to come over for dinner the next night. Gerard decided to catch up on the Grey’s Anatomy episode he missed during book club last week. 

 

“Oh my goodness.” Gerard covered his eyes. “Surgery ew. Needles, ah!” He squealed. Ray walked into the living room and stared at Gerard curled up under a blanket, covering his eyes aggressively. 

 

“I don’t know why you watch that shit when you’re afraid of needles and stuff.” Ray nagged. 

 

“I honestly don’t know either, it’s addicting.”

 

“By the way, your mom called the home phone, she left a voicemail saying that she was out at like the supermarket and a man was asking about you. She also mentioned she called your phone first, but you didn’t pick up the call. You should call her back.” Ray added. Gerard paused his show. 

 

Gerard stared at his phone. He saw the notification that he had a voicemail to listen to from UNKNOWN CALLER. His chest tightened up. He had refused to touch his phone after the call came in.  

 

“My phone’s acting, um, kinda wonky. I’ll use the home phone.” He stood up and grabbed the landline.

 

“Your phone looks fine to me.” Ray commented. 

 

“Oh, well it’s not.” Gerard walked into his bedroom and dialed his mom’s number.

 

“Gerard Arthur Way, why aren’t you answering your phone.” For the third time today, Gerard explained the Alex situation, silently cursing Mikey for not telling her and making him go through the trouble of telling another person.

 

“Oh, Gerard, poor baby, I’m sorry.” Donna attempted to console him over the phone.

 

“I don’t wanna pick up my phone. What if he tapped it or something?” Gerard squeaked. 

 

“You don’t have to then.” 

 

“What did you say in your voicemail? I didn’t wanna check. Someone, probably Alex, left me one too.” Gerard told her.

 

“I just said how a man, I guess Alex, was asking me about you. I don’t know how he knew me, I figured you guys were friends in school.”

 

“What did he ask you?” Gerard stammered. 

 

“Like where you were working now and where you live now.” Donna told him.

 

“WHAT DID YOU TELL HIM?” Gerard exclaimed, his voice filling with terror and fear.

 

“I said you worked at the music store, I didn’t specify which one, which I guess is okay, and I told him you moved out of town. I told him if he wanted to know more he should message you. I guessed you guys were friends on Facebook or whatever it’s called.” Gerard prayed that there were many music stores in New Jersey.

 

“What should I do about the voicemail he left me?” Gerard replied.

 

“Have Mikey, or Ray, or Frank, or whatever listen to it.” 

 

“Okay, I will. Thanks Mom! Love you!”

 

“Bye Gerard, also, did I tell you Mikey and Pete are moving in? Mikey’s short on rent and I need more company.”

 

“Good luck, you’re gonna want them to leave after a month. Trust me, I hardly survived eighteen years with Mikey, you’ve already dealt with him for eighteen years, do you really wanna deal with him any more?” 

 

“Oh shut it, Gerard, your brother is fine.” Donna chuckled.

 

“Whatever you say Mom, love you!”

 

~

 

Gerard barely slept that night, he couldn’t stop thinking about the voicemail. He double, then triple checked that all the windows and doors were locked and that all the curtains were shut. He woke up early, or maybe he never actually got to bed. He looked around his room. Everything looked like it was in the same place. He tried to best to go back to sleep, but failed. He laid in bed for a couple hours, mostly working in his sketchbook, until he got too bored and way too caffeine deficient. He did manage to get to read some of his books too. 

 

He walked into the kitchen and luckily, nothing had been moved. He went to begin brewing a cup of coffee and stared at his phone. The notification for the voicemail was still on the screen. It was accompanied by a text from Mikey. It had been sent at 10am. He looked at the clock on his phone, it was 11? Already? He could’ve sworn he woke up at 6 and he didn’t think he was sketching for that long. 

 

He unlocked his phone to view the text.

 

MIKEY WAY: Call me ASAP [10:02am]

 

He really didn’t want to but he knew he had to. Instead of calling on his cell phone, he called on the landline. He had an idea.

 

“Mikey? You okay.” Gerard said when he picked up the phone. 

 

“When I was going to work last night (Mikey works as a host and waiter at Bertuccci’s), I saw him following me there, like, in his car. During work, I figured out how he knew where I lived. He must’ve followed me home one night and seen me go into the house, like on numerous occasions. I guess he put two and two together and figured out that you live, well, lived there. I would’ve told you last night, but after I got home after working the late shift, I fell asleep.”

 

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry Mikey.” Gerard apologized.

 

“Dude, you don’t need to apologize. I just hope you’re safe. Mom told me about the voicemail.”

 

“Speaking of the voicemail, there’s a reason I called you on my home phone.”

 

“And why would that be?” Mikey asked.

 

“I wanted you to listen to it with me. It’ll scare me a bit less if someone hears it with me.” 

 

“Do it, press it.” Gerard put Mikey on speaker, then unlocked his phone. He hovered his finger over the PLAY VOICEMAIL button. 

 

He held his breath while pressed it.

 

“Heyyyy Gerard, it’s Alex, I wanted to let you know I’d be stopping by sometime soon, I figured you missed me. Well, I’ll see you soon!” 

 

Gerard dropped his phone (his mobile, not Mikey).

 

“Fuck fuck fuck fuck Mikey get out of the house.”

 

“Why are you telling me to? If anyone should run, it’s you!”

 

“I know, but I don’t think he knows where I live, he knows where you live.”

 

“Well where am I supposed to go now, Gerard.”

 

“I have no idea."


	16. A Very Short and Shitty Chapter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw; mentions of stabbing

- _Mikey and Pete_ - 

 

Mikey decided that if he were to talk to anyone about this terrifying as fuck situation, it'd be Pete. Pete may have been like three feet tall, but he could slap a hoe. In this case, Alex was that hoe. 

 

"Babe, I'm terrified as hell," Mikey concluded his horror story, one that would probably go on an episode of Forensic Files or something. The whole time, Pete had just stared at the wall behind Mikey, but he was listening. "Oh, Mikes..." Pete whispered sadly, and brought Mikey in for a sentimental hug. Walking in on that scene, you'd never guess the kinds of things they had bet on being able to do here or there { _I bet I can fuck you in that two by two bathroom at the gas station_ }.

 

Mikey fell into Pete's embrace, realizing the complete gravity of the situation. He could get killed by Alex. Alex could rape him, or torture him, or hurt his mom or Pete. And if that ever happened to them, he'd never forgive himself. He's the one that Alex followed home, and he'd be coming to the house any day now. Mikey's sobs came even louder and more unevenly { _OML ME POOR BEEB_ }, and Pete could do nothing more than to provide support by hugging him. "It'll be okay," Pete assured his boyfriend, hugging him, "I'll protect you and Donna."

 

Mikey wanted to believe Pete.

 

~

 

- _Gerard and Frank_ -

 

Gerard was devastated that this week's episode of Grey's Anatomy had been cancelled, but Frank was there, so he was content. Nearly a week had passed, and nothing new about Alex had come up. Gerard found himself slipping back into his usual life, worrying less and less about the stalker and ex-sex buddy. Well, one time sex buddy. 

 

"I am officially disgusted," Gerard remarked as he changed the channel, and Frank giggled. The two were curled up on the couch, eating peanut butter and chocolate popcorn, attempting to watch the episode of Grey's Anatomy. However, it was cancelled. So, Gerard randomly flipped through channels.

 

Frank randomly kissed Gerard on the cheek a few times, but Gerard was focused on getting a different program started. He was so focused on this that he hardly realized the familiar face beaming on the news channel.

 

"FUCK, STOP! GO BACK!" Frank cried suddenly, snatching the remote control from Gerard and switching back to the news channel.

 

"Breaking news! There has been a report of a break-in in the city of Belleville, New Jersey. The person is thought to be a man named Alex Gaskarth. At nine tonight, the man was believed to have followed the young Mikey Way of Belleville to his house, and half an hour later. Broke in. A member of the household known to be Pete Wentz is currently being treated in the hospital, as Gaskarth stabbed him three times in his arm before being knocked out by Way. The residents of the property refuse to disclose any more information, though they are currently telling the police department all they know. More news on that will be coming up at midnight, and–"

 

Gerard and Frank both had their jaws hitting the floor, and before either could say a word, the two were rushing in a flurry to grab their coats, slide on their shoes, and to get the fuck to the hospital. As they ran out of the apartment, Gerard pulled out his phone and dialed a taxi. The hospital was a thirty minute walk from there, and it was late. 

 

"Holy shit, this is all my fault," Gerard cried hysterically as he looked up and down the road for the taxi to come, and Frank slid an arm around his waist. "Hey, stop," he whispered, though this was Gerard's fault in a sense. He was the one that fucked Alex once. He was the one that recognized him at the sex store. Gerard started to sob, recalling that Pete had gotten STABBED three times because of him. He was such a fucking whore, and because of that, he landed someone in a hospital. 

 

 _Way to go, Gee_ , he thought angrily as the cab pulled up.

 

~

 

"How do you know Mr. Gaskarth?" a police asked Gerard emotionlessly, and Gerard went red in the face. "We, uh, had relations at one point. Just once."

 

Just one, at the time, seemingly innocent fuck { _that's not innocent what the hell_ }.

 

 

 

 

 


	17. A Life Long Wait For A Hospital Stay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> tw; mentions of stabbing

After a brief interrogation with the police, they finally let him go see Pete. The interrogation was pretty brief. They asked him questions about Alex’s mental health, and if he had ever been abusive towards anyone, and if he ever gave off any signs that he was planning to kill someone. Gerard couldn’t answer a lot of the questions, but he did show the police the voicemail. They ended up taking his phone anyway.

 

Gerard met back up with Frank and they walked the halls together. The walls were white and plain, some covered with signs saying things like “WASH YOUR HANDS” or “CHECK YOURSELF FOR TICKS” or “GET CHECKED FOR STDs FREQUENTLY”. All the doctors and nurses had the same sullen looks in their eyes, and their hands grasped coffee cups, as if it was the last one in their life (in reality, it was probably their last one for another 12 hours). 

 

The thing is, there’s nothing fun about hospitals. Everyone in there in in pain, mental or physical. People lay in beds suffering, families crowd rooms and hallways, leaning on each other crying. The steady BEEP of machines echoes against walls. The squeaky sound of the wheels of a medical cart hurts your ears. The sirens from nearby ambulances flood the hallways. Even the workers feel contrition just stepping into the rooms and seeing someone lay there in pain. You walk down the halls and everywhere someone is suffering, it’s not fun. Not at all. 

 

Gerard squeezed Frank’s hand tightly when they found Pete’s room, J8004 { _what day did revenge come out? june 8th 2004)._ Gerard stared at the sign on the door that said PETE WENTZ. He poked his head through the little window and saw Mikey, his mom, and Pete’s parents crowding around the bed. He couldn’t see Pete.

 

“I-I-I don’t wanna go in. I don’t wanna see Pete’s fucked up arm all because of me and my fucked up life. His parents are there, they’re gonna kill me! I bet they know all about me and my fucked up life. It’s all my fault, I slept with Alex. Why did he have to go after my family, my friends, it’s all my fault!” Gerard collapsed against the wall, beginning to cry. Frank slid down the wall next to him. Gerard laid his head on Frank’s shoulder. A couple of nurses looked over at them, Frank glared and they turned away. 

 

“Shhh, we’ve all made some mistakes, but it isn’t your fault Pete got stabbed. It’s Alex’s fault because he was a bad man who liked hurting people.” Frank whispered to Gerard. 

 

“But I was the reason Pete got stabbed, he might be forever injured! Oh my god, what if that was his good arm. He might be forever injured and what if this permanently affects his bass playing? No band will ever want him because of me! What have I-“ Gerard was cut off by Donna opening the door. She sat down next to him.

 

“Oh, Gerard! Thank god you’re okay! Nobody told me you showed up and I was worried he had gotten to you too and nobody had bothered to tell me. Love, why are you crying?” Donna rubbed his back and wiped his eyes with her shirt sleeve. 

 

“B-b-because it’s my fault Pete was injured and I might’ve scarred him for life. Oh my god does Mikey hate me now too?” Gerard smacked himself in the head. Frank kissed his forehead.

 

“No he doesn’t hate you, he’s worried about you. He thought maybe Alex had come to you first somehow.” Donna informed him.

 

“N-no I’m good, thankfully.” Gerard sniffled as tears continued streaming down his face. He wiped his eyes and took a deep breath in.

 

“Thanks Donna, we might come back in a little bit. I think Gerard needs a little cool down. The police just kind of interrogated him and it riled him up a little bit. We might come back in a little bit.” Frank told her as he helped Gerard stand up. Donna stood up and pulled her son into an affectionate hug. 

 

~~

 

Frank walked Gerard to the tiny cafeteria a couple floors down and pulled out his earbuds. He plugged them into his iPod he pulled out of his pocket. 

 

“I figured you needed some cool down time. We can sit here as long as you need, but if you don’t wanna see Pete tonight, you can sleep over and I can drive you here tomorrow.” Frank spoke quietly and Gerard could only focus on his lip ring. It looked so perfect on Frank.

 

“Thanks Frank, I-I love you.” 

 

“I love you too.”

 

“Would you mind calling Lindsey? I don’t have my phone because they took it for evidence. I can put in her number, just, can you call her?” 

 

“Of course,” Frank stated, “here, you go listen to some music and calm down, I’ll call Lindsey.” Frank put the earbuds in Gerard’s ears and put on Morrissey. Gerard typed in Lindsey’s number. Frank called her and they talked for a little bit.

 

Frank tapped on Gerard’s shoulder. “Gee, Lindsey wants to quickly talk to you, is that okay?”

 

“Yep.” Gerard seemed a lot less tense already.

 

“Hi Lindsey.” Gerard spoke quietly, he didn’t want people to overhear him.

 

“Are you doing okay?” She inquired.

 

“Yes, thank you for asking.” 

 

“Are you going to see Pete tonight?” She asked, there was a ton of noise in the background, it sounded like she was at a train station.

 

“You know what,” Gerard looked at Frank, “I think I will. I’m a bit scared, but I know I should.”

 

“That’s pretty brave of you. I’m gonna go see him tomorrow because it’s getting late and from what I know, usually visitors hours are 10am-9pm or family only 24/7.” Lindsey and Pete had gone to the same high school but only started hanging out recently, their bands sometimes opened up for each other.

 

“Okay, good night Lindsey!”

 

“Good night Gerard, stay safe!”

 

~~~

 

Gerard stood outside Pete’s room for the second time that night, his hands stuck to the knob, unmoving. 

 

“You don’t have to go in, you know.” Frank whispered.

 

“But I want to.” Gerard responded. He turned the knob and walked in. Pete had a relatively small room with a big window. There was a TV up high on the wall. It was turned on and Gerard guessed that Friends was on. Mikey was asleep in one chair, and Pete’s parents were nowhere to be seen. That made things so much easier for Gerard. 

 

Pete wasn’t hooked up to any machines, but his arm was bandaged up pretty bad.

 

“H-hey Pete, how are you feeling?” Gerard stammered out. 

 

“I’m doing a lot better. I’m on so much fucking drugs I can’t feel my arm, aha!” Pete smirked. 

 

“Ahah.” Gerard quietly laughed along. He noted that it was his left arm and he let out a sigh of relief.

 

“At least it’s my left arm, I can jack off fine.” Pete smirked and stared at the TV. Gerard paced around the room a little bit, stalling time for apologizing.

 

“Ah, listen, um, Pete, I’m really really sorry this happened and you can be as mad as you want at me because it’s all my fault but I’m really sorry about your arm.” Gerard confessed. He took a bit of a step back as if Pete could’ve risen out of the bed at any second and punched him in the face with his good arm.

 

“Dude, it’s not your fault, you didn’t stab me, I’ll be out of the hospital soon, he didn’t stab me with like a dagger or anything so the doctor was saying I should heal pretty quickly!” Pete smiled and turned his attention back to the television.

 

“Okay, thanks, have a good night Pete. Sleep well!” Gerard chimed. He looked over and saw Mikey stir in the chair. His glasses were sliding down his nose and his hair was everywhere.

 

“Feel better Pete, have a good night!” Frank beamed. He looked over and Gerard and saw him chuckling at Mikey. Frank whipped out his phone and snapped a quick picture before leaving.

 

~~~

 

It’s 3am. Hospitals are even worse at 3am. It’s usually eerily quiet, except for maybe the spontaneous ambulance whine or people talking at a too loud volume. Nobody is awake. The nurses don’t wanna have a friendly convo because they’ve had a long day, so there’s no one to talk to. It’s strictly family only (or partner only) so you can’t have a big sleepover. There’s nothing to watch on TV, you can’t listen to any music without earbuds (Pete wished he had asked Mikey to bring some). The beeping of machines is the main sound. It drives Pete crazy.

 

“Mikey!” Pete hisses. He curses himself a little for waking Mikey up. He saw Mikey sit up in his chair and look around a bit. He probably forgot where he was for a second.

 

“You okay?” Mikey asks, barely awake.

 

“I’m really sorry for waking you up, I just got a bit lonely and I can’t sleep and there’s nothing to do!” Pete said, trying to remain quiet. 

 

“Here,” Mikey stood up from his chair and walked over to the bed, “can I sit with you?”

 

Pete grinned. “Why of course.” He scooched himself over and let Mikey help push him over a bit more. Mikey lay to his right next to his good arm.

 

“This is perfect.” Mikey noted. 

 

“Not as perfect as you.” Pete marveled. Mikey turned his head and kissed him. Pete smiled into the kiss.

 

“I just can’t wait for you to get out of here so I can give you a proper blowjob.” Mikey laughed and Pete leaned his head on Mikey’s shoulder. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> @faith check wattpad u spork it's important smh


	18. Pete Wentz and The Unicorn Men

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Very sorry for the uploading schedule. I will be covering for Faith for a while and I've been totally swamped with finals so I wasn't able to write until tonight. This chapter was my absolute fave to write.

(tw: mentions of stabbing, one mention of suicide)

 

Alex ended up getting eleven years in jail for assault and battery, and stalking. He sat in the chair on the other side of the room accompanied by policemen. He looked smug and kept staring at the Way family. Gerard refused to even look in his direction. He sat and picked at his nails, and reminded himself that he needed to repaint them. The judge’s voice filled the courtroom, but Gerard’s thoughts were louder and were overpowering the booming voice of the judge.

 

During the trial, Pete didn’t cry, he sat in his chair quietly and constantly made eye contact with Alex. At one point, Pete looked Alex right in the eye and kissed Mikey on the cheek as if he was saying “Hah, I can actually get guys unlike you.” It only gave everyone else more fear to see that Pete didn’t appear to have any long-term mental effects from being stabbed. When you’re almost killed, something is bound to happen to you mentally. Pete was just unfazed. This worried Mikey to great extents. Pete had had bouts of suicidal tendencies, but after being stabbed, he seemed fine. Key word: seemed. 

 

Mikey pulled Pete closer and closer throughout the trial, as if Alex were to suddenly lash out and injure Mikey's boyfriend yet again. At the end, Pete was practically in Mikey’s lap. It wouldn’t have been too good if Pete got a boner. Frank stayed right next to Gerard the whole trial, as if he were to turn around, then turn back and Gerard would be gone _{protective boyfriends}_. Gerard sat in my chair and fidgeted with his hands until he had to walk up. He was barely paying attention whatsoever and could only focus on the fact that Pete almost died. " _Would Mikey have hated me if Pete didn’t make it?”_ Gerard thought to himself. “ _Of course he would, his boyfriend could’ve died because of me. Why doesn’t Pete hate me? I’m the reason he got stabbed."_

 

When Gerard was called up to speak, he kept his voice quiet and mumbled most of his words. He was told to speak up more than once and every time, he turned redder and redder until he was resembling a firetruck. Mikey refused to speak in front of everyone and Gerard wished he had known that was an option. At one point, his eyes glazed over Alex and Alex gave him a smirk as if he was saying “I’ll see you in eleven years and I WILL win you over.”

 

Gerard refused to speak to any reporters, luckily Frank and Donna spoke for him.

 

Pete’s mother was very close to moving next store to Mikey, Pete, and Donna. You know, to protect her firstborn.

 

~~~

 

“Gerard!” Frank nudged Gerard’s sleeping body. Frank had been sleeping over a lot more often because Gerard got afraid easily and Ray just wasn’t the type of person to coddle when upset. 

 

“Nghnm.” Gerard rolled over and nearly rolled off the bed. The two of them were sharing a double-sized bed and it wasn’t all that comfy.

 

“Gerard, you gotta get up, you have your appointment today for your wisdoms.” Gerard threw the covers over his head and groaned. It had totally slipped his mind, he was glad he had Frank to remind him of stuff like that. Frank hovered over the bed and poked at the lump which was Gerard Way.

 

“I don’t wanna goooo.” Gerard’s voice was muffled, as he refused to get out from under the covers. Frank started pulling off the covers which earned him a squeal from Gerard. 

 

“Well, you gotta. And I get to film you all loopy so.” Frank bragged as he pulled the rest of the covers off Gerard. Gerard gave in, and he sat up and stretched. 

 

“Make me coffee?” Gerard asked as he put on his best puppy dog eyes.

 

“No eating or drinking for seven hours before your surgery.” Gerard winced at the word surgery. “Except for water, I’ll give you a nice glass of ice water.” Frank pulled Gerard out of bed and into a hug.

 

“What’s that for?” Gerard asked. He didn’t let go, but he still wondered why. He thought that only parents liked to spontaneous-hug their kids.

 

“Nothin’, I just like hugging you.” Gerard laid his head on Frank’s shoulder.

 

“Can you believe we’re here because of a book. A book you marked up which really pissed me off at the time.” Gerard stated. Frank laughed and let go to wrap his arm around Gerard’s waist.

 

“Yeah, whoopsie daisy.” Frank lead them into the kitchen where they stumbled upon Ray making coffee. The smell of coffee was enough to make Gerard upset. He was thankful that he scheduled his appointment for the early morning.

 

“You guys are so cute it’s kind of killing me here.” Ray laughed and ran his hand through his hair. He walked out of the kitchen without another word and into the cluttered filled room that he called his cave/home.

 

~~~

 

Before the surgery, they gave Gerard a shitton of drugs so he wouldn’t feel anything. They were giving him sedation anesthesia so he wouldn’t remember too much. They had to hold Gerard down while they gave it to him though, because it was administered through a needle. Frank was allowed to stay in the room for a couple minutes while the drugs began to kick in. The dentists did wait a bit too long and Frank was amused the whole time.

 

“Frankie is so silly sometimes. I love him when he’s silly AND when he’s serious.” Gerard giggled. 

 

“Oh yeah?” Frank tried to keep a straight face (even though he’s a homosexual). The sounds of classical music filled the room. For some reason. classical music was stressful to Frank. He sucked it up for Gerard.

 

“Mmhm, like when he was super dominant this morning. _What_ a turn on.” Gerard started snapping his fingers in a z-formation. Frank had no idea why. Frank had a bit of an idea just to see how Gerard would react.

 

“Hey Gee?” 

 

“Yessss?” Gerard turned his head to stare at Frank. 

 

“When we get home, I’m gonna blow you.” Gerard’s eyes widened as if Frank said he was giving Gerard a million bucks.

 

“Nice! My first blowjob! I gotta call Mikes.” Frank was cracking up. 

 

“Gerard?” One of the nurses poked her head into the room, "We’re going to start now. Sir, we’re gonna ask you to leave.” Frank gave Gerard a kiss on the forehead and slid out of the room. A couple of nurses came in just to monitor Gerard’s heart and things.

 

“Bye Frankie! Gosh, he’s adorable.” The nurses chuckled and signaled the doctors that they could begin whenever they were ready.

 

~~~

 

It took them a while to get Gerard into the car after surgery. Mikey and Pete joined them afterwards to help out and film. Gerard was high as fuck and Frank was super excited to get it all on camera. Frank turned on his phone and handed it to Mikey to film.

 

“Why can’t I film?” Pete whined.

 

“Dude, no offense, but you have like one working arm.” Frank pointed at Pete’s left arm in case he had forgotten.

 

“True, true.” Gerard started viciously tapping on Frank’s shoulder.

 

“Yes Gee? One second.” Frank kept his eyes on the road but tried to give all his attention to his loopy boyfriend. Once he came to a stoplight, he faced Gerard.

 

“Do I look pretty?” Gerard batted his eyelashes. It was a bit hard to hear him because of all the gauze in his mouth.

 

“You look spectacular.”

 

“Did you know Mikey was adopted? Or maybe I was adopted. Was I adopted? Man, I should call Mom and tell her I was adopted, she’ll probably wanna know.” 

 

“I did not know that. Interesting fact. How do you feel?” Gerard ignored Frank’s question and started yelling at Mikey. 

 

“MIKEY! I SAW THE UNICORNS YOU WERE ALWAYS TELLING ME ABOUT! THEY REALLY ARE REAL!” Mikey started cracking up in the backseat.

 

“FRANKIE FRANKIE FRANKIE!!!” Gerard started tapping Frank again.

 

“Yes, love?” 

 

“WE GOTTA GO TO THE DENTIST AND GET MY TEETH OUT. ALSO, CAN YOU GET THIS PAD OUT OF MY MOUTH? I THINK MY MOM LEFT IT IN MY HOUSE AND I WAS PROBABLY SUPER SLEEPY AND PUT IT IN. SILLY GERARD, THAT’S NOT WHERE IT GOES.” Pete started wheezing in the backseat and Frank was struggling with driving. Mikey’s laugher was probably the loudest thing on the tape. 

 

“Hey Frank, can you get my dad’s attention.”

 

“Your dad isn’t here.” Gerard never mentioned his dad. He saw Mikey tense up in the backseat.

 

“Um yes he is.” Gerard pointed to Mikey. “He’s right there. Hi Dad.” Gerard waved at Mikey.

 

“I’m your brother.”

 

“FRANKIE WHY WON’T HE WAVE BACK AT ME?” 

 

Gerard started singing a medley of the Hamilton soundtrack, except he switched around 90% of the words and was so out of tune. Mikey got it all on tape, even the parts where Pete joined in.

 

“I like this short man, we should be in a band together. We can be called ‘The Unicorn Men’ and all of our money will go to funding unicorn colleges."

 

~~~

 

Frank pulled into his driveway and Mikey turned off the camera for now. They didn’t wanna bring Gerard to his own place in case Ray was having a band practice or just generally didn’t wanna deal with yelling. They managed to get him into the house without any injuries. 

 

“Thanks guys, have a good day!” Frank shut the door and looked at Gerard sitting on the couch. Frank quickly turned on the camera and pointed it at Gerard.

 

“Lookie, Frank, a puffball has come to visit. WAIT IS THIS A NEW POKÉMON? Wait why is the camera out, are we filming a porno? Damn, this would be a shitty porno. Boy with wings holds mini puffball slash new Pokémon.”

 

“Sadly, we’re not filming a porno.” Frank laughed and propped up Gerard with lots of blankets and pillows. 

 

“That’s a shame. You’re really pretty. You deserve a baked potato.” Gerard grabbed Frank’s hand and squeezed it, then patted it a couple times.

 

“Thanks Gerard, maybe we’ll have mashed potatoes for lunch.” Gerard’s face darkened. 

 

“I. Want. Chicken. Wings.” Gerard huffed out. 

 

“Too bad you can’t eat hard food like that for a while.” Frank smirked. Gerard started crying all of a sudden.

 

“Gerard, baby, what’s wrong?”

 

“I-I’ve never seen a cloud before and I just wanna see a cloud! Can we go find a cloud? I wanna see my first cloud. Who makes the clouds? Is there a cloud factory we can visit? Ah, I’m really sleepy. I’m gonna go to bed.” Gerard tried standing up, but fell down immediately, scaring Frank’s tiny dog in the process. Frank turned off the camera and walked over to help Gerard.

 

“Let me help you, Princess Gee.” Frank lead Gerard to bed and tucked him in. He was going to leave Gerard to sleep to go do some work, but Gerard had other plans.

 

“You promised me my first blowjob when I got all my teeth ripped out of my face.”

 

“When you’re 100% off your drugs and ready to give consent, I’ll give you your first blowjob.”

 

“Oh well, can you stay with me then? I get lonely in this little spaceship of ours. It’s quite small. Next time, bring Lindsey, she’s always wanted to go to Mars.”

 

“I will Gerard, I will.”

 

~~~

 

Frank was glad Gerard waited to get his wisdoms out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this was my fave chapter to write, sorry if like this isn't how people act when they get their wisdoms removed, i had to look up some videos which are hilarious, but i thought of 99% of the idea myself


	19. Gerard Is Probably A 6yr Old On The Inside

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still covering for Faith, so if these chapters are gradually getting more awful, whoopsie daisy.

(tw: blood mentions)

 

**~~~about six hours after surgery-laughing gas has worn off sadly~~~**

 

“Ah, fuck.” Gerard rubbed his eyes sat up in Frank’s bed and held his jaw, it wasn’t in too much pain, just uncomfortable. He took the bloodied gauze out of his mouth and placed it on the nightstand. He was thankful he didn’t choke on it while he was sleeping. Why did Frank let him keep that in?. He looked around the room for the TV remote for some kind of entertainment, but was unsuccessful. He slumped down into the pillows-which smelt like Frank. _Frank._ He wanted to see Frank. It felt like ages since he had seen his boyfriend, even though it had been about six hours.

 

“Fuuuck.” Gerard had started to get out of bed but Frank had other ideas. Frank heard the bed squeaks and started sprinting down the hall into his room (where Gerard was residing).

 

“Nononono…Gee stay in bed.” Frank pushed Gerard back into the bed and pulled up the covers to his face. “You need to rest.”

 

“Fraaaank. I got some teeth pulled. I didn’t lose a leg. I am fine. I just slept for a long time. Plus your room is only fun when you’re here. Specifically when your clothes are off in here. But I’m not picky.” Gerard whined and tried to push past Frank. Frank pinned him to the bed gently and straddled Gerard in the least sexy way possible, because Gerard still had blood on his face and was still a little bit “off”. Gerard gasped but wouldn’t let a bit of flirting stop him from leaving the bedroom. He felt like a prisoner. 

 

“Obviously the drugs they pumped you up with haven’t stop working yet, which is good..” Frank smirked and finally let Gerard leave the bed. Gerard pulled on his hoodie he saw on the ground. 

 

“Thank you.” Gerard rolled his eyes and walked into the kitchen to grab some water. He plopped down on the couch and turned on the TV. Minutes later, he was asleep.

 

**~~~2 HOURS LATER~~~**

 

Gerard woke up once again in Frank’s bed. He didn’t know how he got there, since Frank basically had chicken arms. The only thing he could focus on was the painful throbbing pain in his face. The medicine had finally wore off. He dreaded this moment. 

 

“FRANK!” Gerard yelled. That hurt like hell. He groaned and held his jaw once again. _"How long was it since surgery?”_ Gerard thought to himself. He tapped his chin.  _“Had to be like….what…..10 hours…wait what time is it? Is it even night yet? Maybe if I had my schedule….or my phone.…Damn when are the police gonna give me back my phone?”_ Gerard looked out the window, it was still light but since it was summer, it was that weird “Sunsets at 11pm” thing. Longer days, shorter nights. Was it afternoon? Was it nighttime? No one will ever know.

 

“Yes, love?” Frank poked his head around the door of the bedroom and stared at Gerard who was lying in the fetal position on the tiny bed, holding his jaw and tapping his chin, still deep in thought.

 

“It hurtsssss and I’m boredddd.” Gerard groaned and shoved a pillow over his head, pushing his face into the mattress. 

 

“Love, why are you shoving your face into the bed? That’s gonna make it hurt more.” Frank walked over and pulled the pillow off Gerard’s face. Gerard flopped onto the bed and Frank flopped next to him.

 

“I was just tryin' to suppress the pain.” Gerard mumbled. Frank brushed the hair off Gerard’s forehead and pressed a light kiss to his temple. Frank sat up and unlocked his phone. 

 

“Why were you in the fetal position?” Frank asked as he smoothed out the bedspread and fluffed Gerard’s pillows. 

 

“I don’t know. Just in case I spontaneously get period cramps.” Gerard pulled himself out of bed and started the decent down the hallway. Frank ran after him. 

 

“Fantastic. You should know you don’t get those though.” 

 

~~~

 

Frank had a big list from the doctors. He knew Gerard didn’t wanna follow any of it, but he had to make him. They were both on the couch. Gerard was laying on top of Frank with his head on Frank’s heart. The sound of Frank heartbeat was soothing and made Gerard wanna fall asleep. He had already napped twice today and didn’t wanna fuck up his sleeping schedule anymore, so he fought his body and mind to stay awake.

 

“Do you want some…. applesauce?” Frank gagged as he said it. Applesauce was disgusting and for babies and old ladies. 

 

“Ugh, fine. Whatever will make it hurt less.” Gerard rolled his eyes at Frank’s immature behavior.

 

“I gotta pump a shitton of drugs into you too. So you gotta remind me when you finish your applesauce.” 

 

“Best idea today.” Gerard made finger guns at Frank, then resumed watching the television. Frank walked into the kitchen to get some applesauce while Gerard kept his eyes glued to the TV. A documentary on cheese factories came on and he groaned. dog, Lola, jumped into his lap. Gerard scratched behind her ears as she got comfy in his lap. 

 

“Oh Lola, it’s a fantastic thing that dogs don’t have wisdoms.” Frank heard Gerard whisper this to the dog and started laughing. 

 

“Here’s your applesauce.” Frank handed Gerard a spoon and a little container of applesauce. Once Gerard was finished, Frank came in with a handful of pills and liquids. He pulled out a couple of tablets and handed them to Gerard.

 

“You’re such an enabler, Frankie.” Gerard winked and swallowed the pills. He lifted up his tongue and showed Frank his hands to prove it.

 

“Nice job. Do you wanna watch a movie?” Frank asked as he walked over to his movie shelf and pulled out a couple of his favorites.

 

“Nah,” Gerard’s eyes diverted back to the TV, “I’m watching a documentary on cheese factories of America.” Gerard pointed in case Frank hadn’t noticed. Frank cracked up because Gerard wasn’t even on drugs anymore, just a lil dorky as always. 

 

“Where did I find a boyfriend like you?” He grabbed Gerard’s hand and laced their fingers together. Lola jumped in between them, trying to get into the hand holding party. _{smh lola this ain’t an OT3}_

 

“You found me in the library after Lindsey harassed you.” 

 

“Good point.” Frank nodded his head and watched the documentary.

 

The documentary ended up being really shitty, but Frank liked to listen to Gerard’s commentary and he made sure to never miss one of Gerard’s scoffs, eye-rolls, or tongue clicks at the silly narrator.

 

~~~

 

“Frankieeeee I don’t wanna go to bed I napped for like eight hours tonight.” Gerard was trying to pull Frank OUT of bed, just like a six year old. Gerard didn’t know what he wanted to do, but he didn’t wanna go to bed.

 

“Well guess what? I didn’t nap twice today so I’m going to bed. You can read or something.” Frank shook Gerard’s body off of him and he climbed into bed. He shut off the lights and Gerard hovered over the bed in the dark. Finally, he gave in and crawled into bed. He hummed to himself for a minute or so until he spoke once again.

 

“I wanna cuddle at least.” Gerard made puppy dog eyes until Frank gave in. 

 

“Fine.” Frank wrapped his body around Gerard and held him close. Gerard snuggled up into Frank and let his limbs fall where they decided to. Frank had showered hours before and smelt like mint and coconut. Gerard turned his body to face Frank.

 

“Goodnight, Frankie. I love you. I’d kiss you but it’ll hurt"

 

“Goodnight, love.” 


	20. I'm Not O-Fucking-Kay

"Pete, baby, how's your arm?" Mikey asked Pete for the millionth time that day.

 

Okay, Pete understood that he had just been stabbed in the fucking arm, but it irritated him how concerned everyone was about his physical health, while totally neglecting his emotional and mental health. You don't get stabbed and just forget about it. Pete's mind was so fucked up. He didn't tell anyone about it, but what had happened was absolutely terrifying and scarred him.

 

Literally and figuratively.

 

Pete snapped close his laptop screen as Mikey rounded the bed to deliver Pete some breakfast, which caused Mikey to flinch slightly. "Yes, my arm's fucking fine," Pete muttered, setting the laptop to his side and thrusting out his hands for the plate. This spiked a bit of pain, but Pete couldn't care less. He was honestly so fed up with Alex and how he ruined his life. Well, his life, Mikey's life, and Gerard's. And Frank's, for that matter.

 

Mikey, a bit taken aback, cautiously handed Pete his dish and watched as his boyfriend moodily picked at the eggs he had worked so hard to make. He had woken up thirty minutes earlier than usual in order to get all of Pete's pain and infection pills in order and to make him breakfast, which proved much harder than microwaveable waffle sticks. Watching Pete grimace at the unevenly-cooked eggs made Mikey's heart drop, and Mikey sighed sadly.

 

Pete heard the sigh, but he could really care less. Mikey had done nothing but poke and prod at him for information about his arm. The past few days had been fine, with Gerard getting his wisdoms out and the trial, but something had really begun to bother Pete. The more he thought about it, the more irritated he became. All people cared about was his arm.

 

"Pete, how's your arm?"

 

"Honey, does it hurt? Do you need more Aspirin?"

 

"Do you need a pillow for your arm?"

 

Of course it hurt. Some motherfucker fucking stabbed him with a knife in the arm. And that was AFTER this guy had stalked Pete's boyfriend's brother. For a quick fuck. Pete felt a sudden surge of pity for Gerard, but drowned the pity in Mikey's over-and-undercooked eggs.

 

Speaking of Mikey, why was he still standing there? Why was he watching Pete eat? _Just how Alex probably watched us_ , Pete thought savagely, and stabbed at a piece of cantaloupe on the plate with his fork. The fork slipped and hit the plate with a loud scratching noise, and the piece of fruit shot out from under it and flew towards the other side of the room, hitting the wall. Pete grunted angrily and set the fork back down. He was grateful, however, for the fact that his good hand was his instrumentally-inclined hand. 

 

"Why are you staring at me?" Pete asked suddenly, shooting daggers at Mikey with narrowed eyes. Mikey frowned slightly and looked at his feet. After a few moments of silence, Mikey looked back up and nodded to himself for confirmation. "Pete, what's going on? You're not seeming like your normal self at all," he interjected, pointing a daring finger at the small and undersized Pete. 

 

Pete furrowed his brows at his boyfriend and looked back at his breakfast, mumbling, "I'm not." 

 

Mikey made an exasperated noise and stormed off, leaving Pete to eat in silence. He was hurt, angry, and just frustrated at Pete. He had tried his best, but apparently, Pete was fucked up after that encounter. What really scared Mikey were those moments in which Pete would stare at Mikey for up to ten minutes, and when asked about it, would claim that he wasn't even looking in that direction. Mikey could tell that something was wrong with his boyfriend, wrong in the mind, and convinced himself that it was all his fault.

 

Had Mikey knocked Alex out earlier somehow, Pete wouldn't have gotten stabbed with a goddamn knife. A few inches over and he could've been dead. As Mikey marched angrily to the kitchen, he thought about how Pete's behavior would affect him long-term. 

 

Mikey honestly had no idea who to talk to. He couldn't talk to Pete about any of this, obviously, and Gerard and Frank were probably busy. That left someone who Mikey didn't talk to as much as he should have. Just in case she wasn't in the house, Mikey took out his phone and scrolled through his contacts until he found the right person.

 

After a few rings, Donna picked up. "Donna Way speaking, how may I help you?" she asked with a smirk she knew her son couldn't see. Mikey giggled quietly and replied, "Relationship advice, please." 

 

Donna sighed and realized that all of her suspicions had been confirmed. Pete was going insane, and Mikey was feeling the full wrath of it. "Alright, is he batshit yet?" she asked seriously, and Mikey shrugged. "Not full-blown crazy, but still fucked up. It's scaring me, Ma. What if he never gets better, emotionally? Being stabbed by a could-be killer and a stalker sounds traumatic to me..." he expressed his concerns in a quiet voice, trying to avoid questions from Pete about this conversation. 

 

"Hmm," Donna responded, mind at work. Mikey began to clean up from breakfast as Donna talked to him about how emotion and mental stability can be influenced by physical state, which was obvious. But Mikey just couldn't accept that it was Alex's fault and not his own.

 

"You're not the one that stabbed him," Donna reassured him, but Mikey just sighed and out a cup away. "Mom, I dunno... I love you, thanks for listening, okay? I'll try to text or call you soon," he promised, and then hung up.

 

He set down his phone, sighed deeply, and just started at the wall. 

 

One innocent, common Gee-fuck, one stalker. How could his life turn into this? 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Faith again! Do to personal health stuff, I took some time off. Those chapters by Bella were AMAZING! 
> 
> I apologize for the poor length and quality of this chapter. 
> 
> 1\. It's 11 PM here  
> 2\. My fingers are numb  
> 3\. I can't write ever 
> 
> Bella'll fix it


	21. It's 1am and I'm Totally Not Crying

1am is a fantastic time when you’re in a good mood, at a party, or you’re with friends. 

 

1am isn’t fun when your crying on the bathroom floor, desperately praying for people to not hear you.

 

1am is fun if you’re happy.

 

1am isn’t fun if you’re not.

 

~~~

 

It’s been a couple days since Mikey and Pete moved (back) in to Donna’s. She was so excited to have them around. Most parents sit around for eighteen or more years waiting for their kids to leave, but not Donna Way. Since she was a single mother, she grew up with just the boys in the house with her. After Gerard left, then Mikey, she was alone. Donna wasn’t an uptight mother, so Mikey was not fearful to move (back) in. 

 

Pete was still off his game. He had accumulated dark, heavy bags under his eyes and his throat killed. It made his voice alls creatchy-as if he had strep throat. Mikey was oblivious to it, though. Donna had left early for work again, so Mikey offered to make Pete breakfast. Pete sat there poking at his waffles, not bothering to begin eating. He tapped out a drum beat on the plate using his fork. Mikey wiped off his glasses with his shirt and slid them back onto his face as he spoke.

 

“Pete, how’s your arm feeling?” Mikey was pouring Pete a cup of orange juice and placing a bendy straw in it-so Pete wouldn’t have to lift it up. Mikey sat down at the table across from Pete. Pete’s eyes turned dark as he stared down Mikey. 

 

Pete stood up and pushed his chair out from the table and it made a loud scratching sound on the linoleum floor. Mikey cringed. “Why don’t you ever ask how I’m fucking doing?! Everything is about my arm! I’m fine! It ain’t that deep of a stab! I’m almost back to normal! Have you ever considered the fact that maybe I’m not okay, Mikey? Have you ever thought about how _I_ feel about all this? Because I’m not okay! I’m really not and no one seems to care, not even you!” Pete stormed out of the kitchen and slammed their bedroom door. He knew the bedroom probably wasn’t the best place to hide, as they _both_ slept in there, but it was too late-Pete already slammed the door and slipped the lock.

 

“Fuck.” Mikey placed the glass on the table and ran up the stairs to his bedroom. He tried the doorknob, it was locked. 

 

“Pete!” Mikey knocked. “Please open up, I’m really sorry and I wanna hear you out.” Mikey heard a faint clicking sound and the door opened. Pete sat down on the bed and began flipping through a comic book that was lying on the bed. 

 

“Pete,” Mikey spoke quietly, “do you wanna talk about this?” Pete shook his head and grimaced at Mikey. He knew that being silent wouldn’t help his cause, but he was gonna do it anyway.

 

“That’s okay, I can wait. Whenever you’re ready to talk, I’m here.” Pete didn’t even look up when Mikey said that. Mikey left the room and walked into the hallway to call Gerard.

 

~~~

 

“Hey Gee! I need help.” Mikey stated. “By the way, how’s your mouth doing?” He added.

 

“I blew Frank today for the first time in like a week, so I think my mouth is doing well.” It was just like Mikey could hear Gerard wink through the phone. “you’ll have to ask Frank, though. I’m sure he’ll tell you all about it ig you ask.” Mikey groaned. He could hear Frank cracking up in the background and he sighed. Was Gerard the one to go to? He did have quite a lot of experience in this field.

 

“So. I need some advice.” 

 

“Sure thing, little bro. What’s up?” Mikey caught Gerard up on his current situation. If Donna couldn’t help, maybe Gerard could shed some light on the situation.

 

“I think you need to focus on him a little more. Mikey, he got fucking stabbed. If you got stabbed, you’d probably have a bit of trouble in the head. You can’t blame him for being upset, he’s probably afraid.” Gerard droned on and on about how important it is to check up on people-mentally and physically. Mikey made the connection in his head, he wasn’t asking Pete at all about how _he_ felt. Mikey felt like he got stabbed in the heart.

 

“Oh my god, I’m such a shit boyfriend. I’ve got to go.” Mikey hung up on that note and ran back into the room. Pete was exactly where he was when Mikey left him. He threw his arms around Pete and felt a huge rush of guilt flow though his body.

 

“I’m sorry I never ask how you’re doing. I’m sorry for thinking you were okay when I should’ve known you weren’t. I shouldn’t have assumed you were fine and I should’ve asked how you were actually doing, like on the inside. I’m so sorry, Pete.” Mikey didn’t let go of Pete for a long time after that. Pete stayed silent, but laid into Mikey’s chest. A couple minutes later, Mikey realized Pete was crying, as his shirt began to feel wet. He rubbed tiny circles into Pete’s back and let him cry himself out. He needed it. Afterwards, Pete laid on Mikey’s chest and fell asleep.

 

~~~

 

At dinner (after their nap), Pete was still not speaking to anyone. He poked at his food the entire time, barely swallowing much. He cleared his plate and walked slowly and softly up the stairs.

 

“Is he okay.” Donna whispered to Mikey as she poured herself a glass of wine.

 

“Not in the slightest.” Mikey answered with a sigh. What would he do with Pete. What _should_ he do?

 

“Do you have like a game-plan?” Donna inquired. 

 

“No idea.” Mikey placed his plate in the sink and walked to the living room. He grabbed some of Pete’s favorite movies and ambled up the stairs. He walked right into his room, where Pete was sitting cross-legged on the ground, plucking out a tune on an unplugged-in bass. When he saw Mikey walk in, he placed the bass back on its stand and sat on the bed. 

 

“Would you like to watch a movie? I brought some of your faves.” Mikey thrust out a couple of movies he had heard Pete talking about. Pete picked up the disc for Bridge To Teribithia and slid it into the DVD player. The commercials began to start, and Pete curled up next to Mikey on the bed.

 

“This is one of my favorites.” Pete whispered to himself. Mikey pretended he didn’t hear, but it was his favorite thing he’d heard all day.

 

~~~

 

Mikey fell asleep right after the sad scene. Pete looked over at the sleeping Mikey and sighed. He looked over at the clock and saw that it was almost one in the morning. He decided to brush his teeth and get off to bed. He walked across the hall to the bathroom and stared the mirror. He took off his shirt and examined his wounds from the knife. They were healing pretty well. Pete looked at himself in the mirror. He hadn’t slept in days. Would this be his third sleepless night? 

 

Pete stared at himself in the mirror and closely examined himself. He looked like a wreck. He ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. Mikey just would’t understand what was going on inside his head.

 

“ _What if Alex had a sidekick? Did they ask him that in the questioning? What if someone is outside the house, waiting for a signal, and then they’ll hurt or kill Mikey or Donna? What if they’re out to get Gee or Frankie? What if they found Mom and Dad? What if they’re even outside the door? What if they kill someone? What if they come back for me? I bet they’re outside watching. I bet they-“_ Pete slid down the wall, tears beginning to form in his eyes. A lump caught in his throat and he swallowed loudly. He could feel the hot tears burning his face and he reached up to wipe them away. Out of habit, he reached up with his left arm and winced out loud. 

 

“Fuck.” Pete stood up and looked in the mirror again. He quickly ran some water to wash his face. 

 

“Pete? You okay? I heard you wake up like ten minutes ago.” Mikey knocked on the door. Pete appeared outside a minute later and let Mikey lead him to bed. Mikey used his hand to wipe the tears out of Pete’s eyes. 

 

“I don’t want you to be sad, but it’s okay to be sad.” Pete let Mikey sprinkle kisses all over his face. He let Mikey suck two hickeys into his neck. He let Mikey hold his hand. 

 

“Goodnight Pete. I love you. Sleep well. I hope you have a better day tomorrow, but we’re gonna take it one step at a time. You’re gonna get better and that’s the truth.” Mikey pushed back Pete’s hair and kissed him on the forehead.

 

For the first time in days, Pete fell asleep, and stayed asleep for a long time. He didn’t have any nightmares for the first time in weeks after the accident. He dreamed about Mikey driving him to New York, and photographing candid pics of Mikey everywhere. He was already on the road to recovery.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i promise this does get happier, we have no clue how or when it's gonna end, but it will be a happy ending
> 
> faith go on wattpad <3


	22. A Not-So-Sad Chapter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that this is short, I'm tired as fuck
> 
> -faith aka romanticizingchemicals

Gerard awoke in a cold sweat, panting heavily. He could hardly breathe, as his chest seemed to be tied up in some huge knot. His eyes darted around the room, which was a dark abyss of nothingness. He couldn't see two feet in front of him.

 

"F-Frank," Gerard choked out, feeling the bed around him for his boyfriend. But he wasn't there. The panic in Gerard's chest grew, until he muttered Frank's name over and over again, getting louder with each repetition. Soon, Gerard was literally screaming for Frank, and did so until his throat was sore and Frank came flying through the door. 

 

"Gee? Baby, what's... what's wrong? Is it Alex?" Frank asked quickly and breathlessly, grabbing Gerard's hands and sitting in between his legs. Gerard quickly shook his head and tried to calm his breathing, but with each breath, pieces of his nightmare returned. They filled his head and fit together as though they were a puzzle, and it made Gerard cringe.

 

_"Gerard, please," Alex whispered, placing a small hand on Gerard's shoulder. Gerard shook his hand off, and it returned back to Alex's side, hanging limply. "Alex, fuck off and stay away from me," Gerard replied desperately, quickly walking away from him._

 

_Instead of accepting defeat, Alex sighed angrily and lunged for Gerard, grabbing hold of his sleeve. Panicking, Gerard attempted to fall over or to run or to do anything to get away from Alex, but he couldn't. Alex overpowered him easily, pinning both of his arms behind him and shoving him roughly against a wall. Unable to move, or to speak, Gerard silently sobbed, attempting to kick Alex from behind. However, he wasn't able to, and Alex leaned in to whisper something._

 

_"I'll get them all, and it'll be all your goddamn fault."_

 

Gerard began to sob, which alarmed Frank. He had seen Gerard cry before, but never like this. "Gee, baby, you okay?" Frank asked, voice full of concern. He didn't know what Gerard was thinking or what had happened.

 

Frank had gone out to the kitchen to get some food at about eleven, and somehow ended up falling asleep on the sofa in the living room. He wasn't sure if Gee had seen someone or heard someone or had done something regrettable. It scared him and saddened him to see Gerard so broken and hurt, and it was all Alex's fault. 

 

~

 

-Mikey and Pete-

 

This was it. Mikey finally had the plan, the idea, the person, the hope, and, most importantly, the love. His ideas were corny and pretty awful, but he was so excited and determined. 

 

He was going to marry Pete.

 

"Ma, are you sure?" Mikey asked Donna as she buttoned up his shirt, to which she nodded and muttered, "Of course I'm sure, I'm your mother for fuck's sake." Mikey snorted and scratched his side, which was being irritated by the seam of the shirt. "Yes, mother dearest," Mikey exaggerated, and Donna proceeded in slapping him across the face.

 

Pete came downstairs about five minutes later, eyes bright and hair freshly washed. "Ready for that date, muffin?" Pete asked Mikey sweetly, and Donna cooed as the two kissed quickly. She retrieved her phone and snapped a picture of her son and his boyfriend, and then admired the picture for a few moments. 

 

"Now, boys," Donna said in a warning tone, though she was smiling, "Use protection, don't take candy from strangers, and brush your teeth before bedtime." Pete and Mikey grinned at Donna and began to leave the house, but Donna grabbed them both by an ear and pulled them down (or, in Pete's case, up) to her level. They winced and exclaimed outbursts of pain, but Donna said, "Shut up. You both BEHAVE. ESPECIALLY YOU, MIKES!" With that, she finally let the two leave the house, and once they did and they got in the car, they began commenting on her behavior.

 

Mikey seemed to think that she was just nervous about being alone again. Everyone was shaken by the Alex incident, and it was now a common fact that tomorrow is never promised. Pete, on the other hand, believed that Donna was just upset seeing her boys grow up. "She doesn't mention Alex," Pete argued, and Mikey rolled his eyes. "Of course she doesn't, she probably thinks you have some sort of mental trauma or something," Mikey reasoned, which shut Pete up for a few seconds. 

 

On their way to the plaza, they had to pass a sort of farm place, which had a mule. The mule was standing by the fence, staring into the souls of every driver that passed. Just then, Mikey got the bright idea to tease Pete a bit. "Relative of yours?" Mikey asked Pete, pointing with his free hand to the mule. 

 

And Pete, who was more of a smart-ass than Mikey, replied, "Yeah, by marriage." 

 

Mikey shut up after that.

 

~

 

"I loved this band growing up," Pete said fondly, holding up a Yellow Road Priest CD. Mikey looked at it and shrugged. "Never heard of them, but if you want it–" 

 

Pete sighed loudly and put the CD back. "I know, I know!" he repeated, as Mikey constantly reminded him that he could get whatever he wanted. Pete continued to shift through the CDs, and then picked out an Anthrax one. He knew that Mikey's favorite band was Anthrax, so he secretly slipped it into the basket that they were using to buy things. It was full of CDs and posters and small merch and two vinyls. 

 

"I think we've accumulated approximately a bajillion dollars worth of old shit," Pete commented, patting the basket and smiling at his boyfriend. 

 

"It's not shit. It's the good stuff," Mikey responded stubbornly, picking up the basket and standing up. Pete followed suit, grabbing Mikey's hand as the two walked towards the front desk.

 

Mikey decided that he'd use the CD case of some Bob Calloway as the proposal plan, and made a mental note to slide the ring in when Pete wasn't looking.

 

 


	23. Proposals and Picnics

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fuck this is so cute i wanna cry thank u faith for this fantastic idea
> 
> i have finals this wk and instead of studying i'm writing whoops it's 12am i can barely type

~QUICK BIT OF BACKGROUND, Mikey and Pete met at the record store. They became friends quickly. They began dating a couple weeks later after hooking up in the tiny bathroom of the record store and THEN after hooking up once again in Burger King. They’ve been together for a couple months.~

 

~

 

Mikey had the proposal all planned out, he just needed to get one more thing: flowers. They were going to have a picnic in a nice place. Mikey just didn’t know where yet. He had some ideas in mind, though. After they went to the record store (Mikey paid for everything), they hopped back into the car and began their trip on the highway. The sound of Gym Class Heroes quietly echoed in Mikey’s tiny car. Pete sat unpatiently, drumming his fingers on the door handle and fidgeting in his seat. He kept sighing and tapping his foot, anxiously looking out the window every couple minutes. Pete Wentz and cars do not mix. 

 

“Mikeyyy,” Pete whined as if he were five years old again, “where are you making meeeee? I feel like we’ve been in the car for agessss.” Pete wasn’t lying, they had been driving for quite a while, but it would be worth it. Mikey was driving Pete to a lookout space far out in Jersey { _if anyone is curious, i’m talking about Palisades Interstate Park}._

 

“Like twenty more minutes, Pete.” Mikey turned up the volume a little bit more and began to bob his head to it. He sped up the car a bit more and Pete yelled out a “WHOO YES MIKEYWAY LET’S KICK IT INTO OVERDRIVE”. Mikey cracked up and when they stopped in traffic, he pressed a soft kiss to Pete’s temple. The two continued to talk about movies and bass for a while before they arrived.

 

~

 

When they finally showed up, Mikey parked the car and slipped the new CD down the front of his pants. It was uncomfortable, but important. He swung his backpack (which had the ring inside) over his shoulder. He prayed that he wouldn’t crack the cover. Once they both got out of the car, they stood up, stretched, and Pete began to meander around the parking lot. After they found a little spot to eat, Mikey excused himself to go to the bathroom. He hoped Pete would’t wander off. Once he saw Pete sit down, he ran off past the bathrooms to the little guest shop they had. While he was making his way there, he said a silent prayer that they would have flowers, preferably yellow.

 

He burst through the doors of the store, nearly out of breath (Mikey wasn’t big on any sport that wasn’t on Wii Sports Resort). He looked around and found some flowers. They weren’t in a bouquet, but there were better than ripping them out of the tiny garden by the parking lot. He grabbed them and examined the price tag, they were $8. He pumped his fist as he walked up to the cash register. He slapped a $10 bill and the flowers on the counter and smiled at the cashier. It was a girl with long blue hair who must’ve still been in college. When she saw Mikey walk up to the counter, her eyes filled with love and lust. She batted her eyelashes at him as he began to speak.

 

“Just these, please. Thanks a ton.” Mikey anxiously tapped his foot. Pete probably had thought Mikey locked himself in the bathroom stall again. 

 

“Who are ya’ planning on givin’ these to?” She rung up the order and handed him the flowers. She stared at the bulge under Mikey’s shirt, which was the thick CD case poking through his tight shirt. 

 

“My boyfriend, I’m proposing.” When the girl (her name tag said “Ashley” with a cross through it. “Halsey” was scribbled underneath the strikethrough) heard the word boyfriend, her eyes turned dark and her smile faded.

 

“Oh, okay. I hope it goes well.” She looked away. 

 

“Thanks!” Mikey ran out of the shop and ran all the way to where Pete was sitting. The CD dug into his chest with every step he took. It was probably covered with sweat. Pete had already set up the blanket and was beginning to take out the food too. Mikey threw his backpack on the ground and sat down. 

 

“Dude, finally, I thought you locked yourself in the stall again.” Pete chuckled. Mikey remembered when he got locked in the bathroom at school in 11th grade, Mikey had told Pete that story in the hospital to cheer him up. 

 

“What are those?” Pete pointed to the mini bouquet of yellow flowers (6 of them to be exact). Mikey thrust the flowers into Pete’s hand. Pete took them and after smelling them, he gently placed them next to him. While this was going on, Mikey carefully removed the CD and quickly examined it for scratches. Luckily, it was in pristine condition except for the fact that it was a bit sweaty. 

 

“While you were gone, I see getting flowers, I took some photos.” Pete bent his arm back and pulled out his camera. He winced, because he used his “bad arm” and wasn’t 100% better just yet. He showed Mikey some photos. Mikey let Pete talk on and on about what setting he used, and the exposure and stuff like that. Pete used to take photography classes in college but stopped to be in his band. He still was pretty good with cameras in Mikey’s opinion. Mikey began to take out some of the food he had made for their picnic. Pete pulled out his phone and put on some music at a lower volume. Mikey hummed along to the song. 

 

~

 

After eating, Mikey knew it was time. He didn’t write out the proposal or anything, he had it in his head. He stood up. He did notice some people were nearby, oh well. 

 

“Mikey, what are you doing?” Pete asked. He gasped when he saw Mikey go down on one knee. 

 

“Pete, when I first saw you, I immediately knew you were too cool for me. I looked at your from across the store and I’m like “damn, that guy is so fucking hot he must get all the girls”. I was pretty intimidated but now that I’ve known you for a while I see that you’re just a cuddly dork.” Mikey’s voice became softer during the last parts. Pete laughed, his eyes were getting a bit watery. Mikey cleared his throat, then continued. 

 

“When I first talked to you I’m like 'Oh my god what is english? hot guy!!! hot guy!!! can’t speak what do i do omg'. But luckily, you were super sweet and I didn’t vomit on your shoes. Wait am I supposed to say that? How do proposals work?” He looked down at Pete and shrugged his shoulders.

 

“You’re doing well, baby.”

 

“Since I’ve been with you, I’ve learned to laugh a lot more. You’re really funny, and super sweet and you never have failed to make me smile when I’m having an off day. You always know how to make me feel better and I don’t even know how, you’re magical.” Mikey squeezed his eyes shut so he wouldn’t get too nervous. Pete was staring up at him, smiling like the cuddly dork he was.

 

"Every moment that I’m with you makes my day 100 times better because you never fail to inspire me or make me happy. Whether you wrote a new song, or mastered a riff that was killing you, I always look forward to seeing that glow in your eyes. I wanna see that every day.. That glow keeps me going Your determination always inspires me to keep going even when I’m just 100% done. From the first time I saw you, I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you. We have ever so much in common and I love you so so so much. I wanna show everyone just how much you mean to me. I’m hoping you’ll say yes because I also bought you that new CD that you wanted even though you said we bought too much stuff.” Mikey opened up the CD to reveal a ring. Pete’s hand went to his mouth in shock. Tears began to stream down Pete’s cheeks. 

 

“So, Pete.” Mikey laughed as he brushed some tears out of his eyes. They were flowing down his cheeks anyway. They both were emotional messes at this point. “Will you marry me?” Pete hopped up and connected their lips. Mikey wrapped his arms around Pete’s waist and pulled him in tighter. Pete nearly pushed Mikey over. Mikey could hear some distant cheering in the background and he smiled into the kiss.

 

“I’ll take that as a yes.” Mikey said while laughing.

 

“Of course.” Pete pulled them both down and he leaned his head on Mikey’s shoulder.

 

“I’m gonna call Gerard and my mom. Do you wanna tell your parents now?” Pete nodded and walked off to call his parents. Mikey pulled out his phone and dialed Gerard’s number.

 

“Hello?” Gerard’s voice was a bit raspy when he answered the phone. Mikey could hear guitar in the background and immediately knew Frank was having band practice.

 

“I’M GETTING MARRIED I’M REALLY GETTING MARRIED!” Mikey was nearly screaming at this point but what the fuck? He was allowed to.

 

“OH MY GOD CONGRATULATION! I AM SO PROUD MIKES-FRANK? GUESS WHAT? MIKEY’S GETTING MARRIED!” Mikey heard a cheer coming from the background.

 

“I gotta call Ma and tell her, thanks Gee. Love you!” 

 

“Love you too!” Mikey hung up and dialed the number. She had the same result at Gerard, just 10x more scream and excited. She started to talk about suits and preparation and Mikey groaned and hung up. He was a bit fresh at times. He began to pack up the picnic while Pete talked to his family.

 

~

 

After a while (Pete called a ton of people-Mikey was gonna tell people later) Pete started walking back to their spot with a huge smile, he shoved his phone into his pocket and ran to Mikey’s arms. Mikey wrapped his arms around him and kissed his cheek.

 

“So, fiancé, wanna get home?” Mikey whispered into Pete’s ear. 

 

“I thought you’d never ask.” They walked hand in hand all the way to the car. Their grins never left their faces. 


	24. Just Know That I Will Remember You

Gerard was happy for Mikey, he really was, but weren't they rushing things just a bit? Besides, after the happenings of the past weeks, wouldn't they want to take things slow? 

 

When Gerard brought this up at breakfast with Frank, his boyfriend simply shrugged it off and shoved another spoonful of oatmeal into his mouth. "I mean, that'd only make them want to speed things up, 'cause tomorrow isn't always promised," Frank replied casually, swallowing a scolding bite of oatmeal. Gerard winced and asked, "How the fuck do you eat that if it's so damn hot?" He himself shoveled a few spoons of scrambled eggs into his mouth as Frank answered, "Dunno. But I think you're just jealous of Mikey." He raised his eyebrow and added a smirk to his comment, causing Gerard to nearly spit out his food. 

 

" _Jealous?_ " he asked incredulously, shaking his head in disbelief. Frank laughed at him and nodded, jabbing a short finger in his boyfriend's direction. "Yeah, I think you are," he accused, setting his spoon down his his bowl. "Mikey is younger than you, but he's already gonna get married. You're just jealous." Gerard scoffed once more and downed another bite of eggs. "I am not," he mumbled, and when Frank giggled once more, he sighed loudly and crossed his arms. "You never know!" he cried, "I could be proposing tonight! Or right now! I could have a ring shoved up my ass, so that next time you top and find it wedged up there, you'd pull it out and I'd propose. I'm so fucking romantic. Like, you never know!" Frank was taken aback slightly, but laughed it off and shrugged. "I could check for that ring if you wanted me to, but I highly doubt that after all the shit that's been happening, you'd want to get married. Besides, you and me haven't known each other for as long as Mikes and Petey have. Get over it and learn to be happy for them," he supplied, to which Gerard let out an irritated grunt and finished off his breakfast.

 

The two ate in silence for another few minutes, until Gerard said in a nearly inaudible voice, "Y'know, I'm gonna marry you some day." He reached for Frank's hand, which slipped into his almost immediately. Gerard picked at Frank's nail polish, which was bothering him anyways. it was chipped and buffed and just messing with his OCD. Frank smiled a genuine smile and joked, "What if I say no?"

 

"Then I'll stalk you like Alex stalked me and then stab your future boyfriend in the arm," Gerard replied with a sinister grin, causing the two to break out into peals of laughter. Gerard brought Frank's hand to his mouth and kissed it softly, let go, stood up, and collected the breakfast dishes. "I love you, you know that, right? No matter what, I'm here for you. You can talk to me about anything," Frank whispered as Gerard kissed his cheek. Gerard's heart skipped a beat, but he recovered by saying, "Yes, mother." Frank laughed shortly and stood up _{he was just as short as his laugh}_. "I'm being serious, Gee-bear." His boyfriend looked up from the sink and nodded, setting the dishes down and sighing. "I know that, Frankie," he responded quietly, and shrugged, "It's just... You have your own shit to deal with too, y'know? I can't come to you with all my issues and then expect you to not tell me yours." Frank nodded and smiled, saying, "Hey, I know that. But I tell you my issues all the time!" Gerard looked down at him seriously, crossing his arms.

 

Frank widened his eyes and looked around the room. "What?" he cried, sticking out his chin a little. Gerard clicked his tongue and shifted his weight to one leg. "Name the last time you came to me about one of your problems," he said, and Frank thought about it for a few moments. It was true, he didn't talk to Gerard about his own problems much. "Oh, when I clogged the toilet last night at one in the morning," Frank recalled with a chuckle, and Gerard bit back a laugh. "Frank, I'm being serious," he repeated, and when Frank couldn't reply, he sighed sadly and stepped away from the kitchen. "See what I mean? How can I talk to you about my issues if I can't trust you to talk about your own?" Gerard asked pointedly, and then walked out of the room and to the living room. 

 

Frank sighed, annoyed, and followed Gerard. "This fight again? I just wanna cuddle," he pouted, crossing his arms. Gerard frowned at him and put his hands on Frank's hips. "You're the one who started this, Mr. 'You're Just Jealous blah-blah-blah'," he accused, and Frank giggled. 

 

"Fuck me then and it'll solve all your problems," he suggested with a wink, and Gerard shoved him against the wall. 

 

~

 

"The wedding needs to be perfect," Mikey said, more to himself than to his mother, "I want it to be the best thing that's ever happened to my Pete. It'll have all his favorite foods at the reception and a huge cake and I'll bring in all his friends and they'll play our music. And the invitations need to be simple, because Pete is big on simple. Oh, and I want Frank's mom to come in and play the piano for us. No, wait, no. I want Brendon. That's Gerard's friend, I want Brendon to come in and play it. He's really good. And Patrick, Andy, Joe, they'll be our band. They can deal without a bassist for a little bit. Mom, I'm just so excited!" Donna laughed as her son nearly hit his head on a cabinet as he put away a plate. "Mikes, be careful, you hazard," she remarked, and Mikey faked shock. "I'm excited too. My little baby is gettin' so old! I'm gonna be a grandma too!" she exclaimed, drying off a cup and handing it to Mikey. He giggled and took the cup, setting it in a cabinet. "Maybe you will be, maybe not. Pete has said he wants tons of kids though," Mikey explained, closing the dishwasher for his mother and kissing her cheek. "Thank you for listening to my rants."

 

Donna laughed and shrugged. "It's my job as a mother. I remember this one time that Gerard spent an hour yelling at me about how his Batman shoes were so inaccurate, and how the proportions were off. Supposedly, it was my fault. The kid was like four," she told Mikey, who chuckled and scratched his neck. "Gee has always been real smart," he mused, and Donna nodded quickly. "Oh, he has. The kid's a genius. Not like you're not Mikey, but Gerard's brain is wired in such a fucking complex way, with so much pure genius worked in, it's hard to believe he came out of my vagina." 

 

"But you, Mikey. You're a work of art. I haven't figured you out fully, but you know you've got gifts. I think that you more than anyone I know knows exactly how to apply those gifts. But you're quiet about it. Now, Gee has gotten better about it, but he would stay too quiet. To a point of such low self esteem. I couldn't fathom the internal pain he suffered. But now, I've noticed, he's working at it. He's more outgoing. Social. He can go to the store without having a panic attack in the ice cream aisle. But Mikey, you're not like your brother. Your smarts are different from his, okay? Your brain is all about everyone else. It's not about Mikey, and how Mikey's doing. For a little while, through your, um, addiction... During that period in time, no one knew what was happening. Like hell Mikes, I wouldn't even know you were dealing with that had you not told me later. You kept quiet. Your talents and gifts, Michael J. Way, are something this world can't even handle. You're a gift, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise," she finished, taking a deep breath. Mikey just stood there, gaping at his mother in astonishment.

 

Sure, she had told him how special he was and all, but never to this extent. Some parts of his brain wanted to accept her speech, but he wasn't wired that way. The only thing he knew how to do were to reject compliments and to brush them off. "Thanks?" he said sincerely, though it came off as a question. Donna shook her head at him and reached for his hair, smoothing his bangs down. "Accept it and stop pushing it away Mikes. You're talented. You have a gift. So many gifts. Use them," she said quietly, and in that moment, Pete crashed into the room with some papers in his hands. Before Mikey could ask what was going on, Pete thrust himself into his fiancé's arms, a sobbing, disshelved mess. 

 

"Th-They're disowning me! They called m-me, Mikey, they called me a s-s... I'm going to h-hell Mikey, Mikes, p-please," Pete cried, pulling at Mikey's shirt collar and at his hair manically. Mikey attempted to shove him away, but Pete just clung to him tighter. Donna stared at the scene with wide, concerned eyes. "Who? What?" she asked Mikey, who shrugged and looked down at Pete. He was so confused, but all he knew was that his soon-to-be husband was crying and needed comforting.

 

Mikey finally managed to pull Pete away for a few seconds, and then spoke. "Pete, breathe. Think," he soothed gently, and Pete drew several shaky breaths. Mikey was reminded of Gerard's many anxiety attacks during his younger years, which triggered him slightly, but he ignored the thought and focused on Pete. "Shh," he consoled, and Pete eventually calmed down enough to the point where he could breathe easily. 

 

"M-My grandparents," Pete finally whimpered. "I told my mom about me getting married, and I know that her parents are homophobic, so I told her not to tell them. But I guess she told her sister, but didn't warn her sister about it, and my aunt told my grandparents. So they... They wrote me this letter. They wrote it to me and..." Pete began crying again and shoved the letter at Mikey, crossing his arms over his chest and sobbing. Mikey read over the short yet harsh letter:

 

_Pete W.-_

_Your Aunt April told us about how you are supposedly marrying a young man named Michael Way. Both of us have an issue with this, as being homosexual is a sin punishable by death. Know that you have practically thrown your ticket to heaven out of the window by making this decision. This is a choice you've made, and you're going to pay the price by an eternity in hell._

 

_Thus, your grandmother and I will no longer tolerate such ungodly behavior. We refuse to acknowledge your position as our "grandson," because that type of entitlement disgusts us and will not be tolerated. We are sorry to inform you that you will no longer be referred to as our grandchild, but as a sinner that cannot be forgiven for such a satanic attitude._

 

_Yours Truly,_

_Grandmother and Grandfather_

 

Mikey already felt the tears stinging at his eyes. He had gone through pretty much the same thing, with non-relatives though. Sure, his dad was weirded out when he heard through the grapevine all those years ago that both of his sons were gay. Granted, he just ignored the fact after many drunken outbursts and beatings. But never had someone disowned Mikey for his life choices. His mom joked about disowning him for things like "preferring apple juice over grape" and shit, but never this. 

 

Mikey tore up the letter, threw its remains into the trash, and cradled Pete for several minutes. Donna retrieved a tissue box from the living room, as she had also begun crying as she watched the two embrace. Mikey whispered reassuring words into Pete's ears, hoping that Pete would believe him. 

 

"Shh, hey, they don't matter," Mikey consoled, rubbing Pete's neck." Pete just shook and cried and stained Mikey's shirt with his bitter tears. He was pissed at his grandparents, but what if they were right? What if he didn't make it to heaven? Of course he had heard about the homosexual discrimination stated in the bible, but he never actually cared or paid much attention to it. It was just common knowledge he gave no fucks about. 

 

But he had really hoped that his whole family would have approved. He didn't think about it much, but this was now reality. He was getting married.

 

To a man. A beautiful, selfless male named Michael James Way. Who gave so much of himself that he had nothing left after a while. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the beginning much fluff and angst
> 
> then end
> 
> ;-;
> 
> xoromanticizingchemicals


	25. We Will Never Sleep, Cause Sleep Is For The Weak

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this sounds a bit angsty at the beginning but it gets so fucking cute i nearly cried

Gerard couldn’t sleep. He wouldn’t stop thinking about proposing. He knew he wanted to marry Frank, he just didn’t feel ready. Recently, Frank had been staying over at Gerard’s more. Ray was touring with his new band around New England, so he’d be away for a month or so, so the house was all free to themselves. Frank was sleeping soundly on the other side of Gerard’s bed. Gerard stared at the ceiling with his eyes wide open, not the slightest bit tired. Insomnia’s a bitch. 

 

_“I barely know Frank. We’ve known each other for like 2 months, Pete and Mikey have known each other for like 4 months? Wait, that’s only like 60 days more. Is Mikey even ready to get married? Some people date for 8 years before marriage. What if Mikey wants a divorce? He’s working as a waiter he’d never be able to afford it. What if Pete’s parents make him divorce Mikey to please the rest of his family? Oh, god, that would_ kill _Mikey. Poor Pete. When will people understand?”_ Gerard was disgusted at Pete’s grandparents’ behavior, but he wasn’t that shocked. They grew up in a different era, maybe one day they’d understand that it’s okay. 

 

_“What if Frank is lying and doesn’t actually wanna marry me? Oh god that’s a big possibility. What if he’s just staying with me because he feels guilty about Alex and-"_ Gerard snapped out of his thoughts. If Frank wanted to leave him, he would’ve been distancing himself. Gerard felt himself feel a little better. 

 

_“Yeah, he still loves me. Wait, was my relationship with Frank_ fate _or something?”_ Gerard shook his head. He wasn’t a big believer of luck or fate or anything like that. { _you don’T BELIEVE IN GOD I DON’T BELIEVE IN LUCK}._

 

_“Maybe I should propose first? Maybe Frank is stressed out and feels like he has to do it first?”_ Gerard sighed and flipped on to his other side. He snuggled deeper into the bed, attempting to make himself sleepy. 

 

_“I always wanted to propose.That means I’ll propose. Now I need to think of a plan.”_ And so Gerard assembled the perfect proposal plan in his head. It was cute and very ‘Frerard’.

 

**FLASHBACK**

 

“Hey Gerard!” Pete yelled. He and Mikey were standing there, giggling.

 

“What?” Gerard groaned, Pete and Mikey both giggling=bad idea.

 

“We’ve got you and Frank’s ‘ship name’. How do you feel about ‘Frerard’?” Mikey did jazz hands. 

 

“S’okay I guess. Why do we need a ship name?”

 

“God Gerard, do you not spend any time on the internet?” Pete asked. That was a lie. Gerard had a tumblr account with 1200 followers, but no one needed to know that.

 

“Fine fine, I guess “frerard” will have to stay.”

 

**END FLASHBACK**

 

 

Before he knew it, it was nearing 7am. He didn’t sleep at all. He suddenly got an amazing idea for a painting. He would give it to Mikey and Pete at their upcoming wedding. He snuck out of bed and tiptoed to grab his sketchbook (to sketch the idea), nearly waking Frank in the process.

 

Frank stirred and Gerard stopped in his tracks, praying that Frank wouldn’t wake up. Luckily, Frank just turned over and didn’t wake up. Gerard let out of a huff of breath and snuck into the kitchen. 

 

_~~~_

 

Gerard was slumped down in his seat at the breakfast table. He had three mugs in front of him, two being empty. It was about 10am and he wasn’t done sketching. He really wanted to paint today, but he had to be willing to stay awake for hours and hours to complete it. His hands shook as he grabbed the coffee cup. More than 50% of the liquids in he consumed in the past 24hrs had caffeine in them.

 

Frank strode into the kitchen and his eyes widened when he saw Gerard. Gerard had his eyes glued to his sketchbook and didn’t even notice that Frank had walked in. He wanted to make a rough sketch for his painting, but his drawing had turned into a masterpiece of it’s own. 

 

Frank stood behind Gerard, mesmerized as he watched him draw and create beautiful lines that turned into something bigger. Suddenly, Gerard must’ve felt a presence because he whipped his head around to see Frank.

 

“Gerard, how long have you been awake?” Frank asked as he motioned to the coffee cups. Gerard continued to draw as he shook his head, trying to form an answer.

 

“I don’t even know, maybe like 43 hours or so? Time is an illusion, Frank. Who needs sleep anyway?” Gerard didn’t look up at Frank. Frank rolled his eyes. 

 

“You’re gonna get sick. I have to work today, will you promise me you’ll at least nap?” Gerard crossed his fingers behind his back, then nodded.

 

“Good, I get worried about you.” Frank kissed Gerard’s head and waled over to begin making breakfast. By Gerard’s famished appearance, he presumed Gerard hadn’t eaten. Frank quickly scrambled some eggs, then got out some plates. He placed one plate in front of Gerard and placed one down in his spot. He poured himself a cup of coffee, then joined Gerard at the table.

 

“I was thinking we could go out on a date tonight? I was thinking the arcade or like we could go to Target, something low-key.” Gerard perked up. He fucking adored Target. He placed his sketchbook down and began to eat his eggs. Frank sipped his coffee and raised his eyebrows as if he were saying “So will you say yes?” 

 

“I’ll have to check my schedule,” he winked, “but I think I can factor it in.” Gerard giggled and sipped his coffee. Frank reached across the table and grabbed Gerard’s hand.

 

“I love you, you know that?” Frank mentioned. He saw Gerard smile. He adored Gerard’s smile more than anything.

 

“I probably love you more.” Gerard noted. Frank lit up. They were both falling in love and it was gonna work out.

 

“Impossible.” They both laughed. Frank finished his food and stood up to go brush his teeth. Gerard ran and pressed him against the wall in the hallway. Gerard connected their lips and slid a cold hand up Frank’s t-shirt. Frank tried to suppress his moans, but he failed. Gerard felt his dick twitch in his pants. Gerard slid his tongue against Frank’s bottom lip, asking for entrance. Frank let himself drown in Gerard. Gerard tugged at the hem of Frank’s t-shirt, and they both stopped to take it off. 

 

“Fuck, Frank, every day you just get more and more beautiful.” Gerard noted. Then, Frank flipped him over-so Gerard was pressed up against the wall. Frank reconnected their lips and Gerard’s hard on was pressed up right to Frank’s leg. Gerard ran his hands up Frank’s body, lightly leaving scratches up and down Frank’s back. Suddenly Gerard pulled away, Frank whined. 

 

“Geeeee, don’t stop, fuck.” Frank moaned. Gerard smirked and attached his lips to Frank’s neck. In the process, he flipped Frank over, he liked being the dominant one. Frank nearly slid down the wall. Gerard sucked hickeys into Frank’s neck that would be a bitch to cover up later. Finally, after marking up Frank, he stopped. 

 

“Why did you stop?” Frank asked. Gerard pulled back on his t-shirt and laughed. Gerard picked up Frank’s t-shirt off the floor.

 

“You gotta go to work, silly head.” Frank groaned and pulled his shirt over his head. “Why did I have to be an adult, I wanna stay home and play Xbox.”

 

“Doesn’t everyone?” Gerard nearly pushed Frank to the bathroom. “We gotta cover up those.” He pointed to all the hickeys he gave Frank. 

 

“If you try to cover those up, my already-hard on will get worse.” Frank motioned to his pants. 

 

“I can fix that.” Gerard winked and unzipped Frank’s pants. { _gottA BLAST I CAN’T WRITE SMUT}_

 

_~~~_

 

Pete woke up in Mikey’s arms. He face felt sticky from all the tears. He looked over and saw that Mikey was shirtless. He immediately felt a lot better. It finally hit him that he was actually going to get married.

 

He was gonna get married. To Mikey Way. _Soon._

 

Pete jumped out of bed and ran downstairs to get something to drink. He nearly ran into Donna. 

 

“Pete, I just want you to know that you’ll always be accepted and welcome here.” She enveloped him into a hug. Pete sighed a sigh of relief. The Way family was fucking goals.

 

“Thank you Donna.” She patted his back and let him go make his breakfast. Pete began to prepare Mikey’s coffee, then he poured himself some orange juice. He still was on board with “No Coffee!11! Strictly orange juice!” regimen. 

 

Mikey slumped down the stairs a couple minutes. His hair was in every direction, and he wasn’t wearing his glasses (so he was bumping into everything). 

 

“Good morning, _fiancé.”_ Mikey gave Pete a kiss on the forehead and walked over to the coffee machine.

 

“Mikey, Mikes, I already got it.” Pete said as he handed Mikey a cup. Mikey throughly examined it as if it were a million dollar diamond. 

 

“Does it look okay?” Pete asked. Mikey was squinting at it.

 

“I’m shocked you figured out how I like it.” Mikey said as he took a sip. 

 

“Mikey, we’re getting married.” Pete said in an entirely serious tone. They both sat down at the table. Donna had made pancakes. They began to eat. 

 

“Oh-em-gee hashtag boyfriend goals.” Mikey whispered to himself.

 

“I think you mean fiancé and I am more than goals. I am queen. Bow dow bitches.” Pete cracked up. Mikey sat there.

 

“I’m the only funny one here, Pete. L-m-a-o what are you doing Pete.” 

 

“You’re a mess.” Pete lightly punched Mikey in the arm.

 

“But you love me?” Mikey asked.

 

“That is true.” Pete leaned over and kissed Mikey.

 

~~~

 

Before Gerard knew it, it was 3:30pm. He texted Frank and said he was taking a nap at 3pm. Gerard was coloring in his sketch, when Frank walked in the door. Of course, Gerard didn’t notice. Frank figured Gerard wouldn’t want sleep, so he claimed he was sick and got the rest of the day off-full pay.

 

“So how’s sleeping going?” Frank whispered right into Gerard’s ear. Gerard nearly jumped out of his chair.

 

“Very well, I’m sleep sketching.” Gerard answered.

 

“Come on, we’re going to nap. I picked up some melatonin _{in case anyone is curious, melatonin is a natural sleep inducer, it’s non-addictive and i 100% recommend it if you struggle with insomnia}_ for you. Please take it or I’m not taking you on the date tonight, I’ll take Pete. Pete would love to go on a date with me.” Frank handed Gerard the tiny pill and lead him to bed.

 

“Fine, fine.” Gerard dry-swallowed the pill and climbed into bed. Frank removed his t-shirt and crawled into bed with him.

 

“Sleep well, Gerard. I love you.” Frank kissed the back of Gerard’s neck and pulled him close. 

 

“Love you too.” Gerard snuggled up to Frank. Maybe sleep could be good? Gerard was too tired to care. Eventually the pill kicked in and he fell asleep.


	26. A Huge Whoops

-3 Months Later-

 

Gerard looked at himself in the mirror and nodded in approval, scratching his neck and noticing that a hair was sticking up. Honestly, he didn't even care. He was too excited. He was finally going to do it. 

 

"Excited?" Frank asked suddenly, wrapping his arms around Gerard's waist. Gerard grinned and nodded, admiring Frank's appearance. He had actually tried to match colors this time instead of wearing black on black. Frank wouldn't admit it, but he had snuck into Gerard's room and had somehow found a color wheel, comparing the complimentary colors and basing his choice of clothing off of it. Thus, Frank was wearing a light purple sweater and some pale, yellow jeans. He was very proud of his wardrobe choice, as was Gerard. The match didn't go unnoticed. 

 

Gerard turned around to embrace his boyfriend. "Elated," he corrected Frank, who pushed him back and punched him in the chest. "You and your enhanced vocabulary can stay right here and eat freezer-burnt pizza instead of going out on a fancy date," Frank sassed, placing a hand on his hip. However, Gerard couldn't take Frank seriously, and began to crack up. "Oh shut up, you love me," he stated matter-of-factly. Frank replied with a sarcastic, "Umm, well..." 

 

The two shared a brief moment of laughter, but then, Ray came in and frowned. "I need to take a shit. You two were supposed to leave ten minutes ago," he said bitterly, holding up a comic book. Frank scrunched up his nose at Ray, and Gerard rolled his eyes. "Ray, always gotta ruin the fun. I was gonna blow Frankie, right here, right now, but no. You feel the need to shit," he said sarcastically, and Ray began to screech in an attempt to block him out. Ray shoved the two out of the bathroom, locking the door behind them and turning on the bathroom fan. 

 

"Were you actually going to blow me?" Frank asked curiously, hopefully. 

 

"And I'm gonna. To the kitchen it is," Gerard countered, extending his arm for Frank to take.

 

~

 

Frank sat in the passenger's seat of the car, his hand resting innocently on Gerard's thigh. Gerard was in charge of driving, though of course, he was having a huge problem focusing on the road. "Hey, love you," Gerard reminded Frank, who made a disgusted noise. The two laughed and Gerard continued driving.

 

Frank was elated, as Gerard called it. He was actually going to do it.

 

After Pete and Mikey got married the month before, Frank was inspired and almost desperate to marry Gerard, to propose. And this was the day. Frank remembered that he had gotten some "flowers" for Gerard, which were actually expensive as fuck, but it'd be worth it. 

 

"Forgot to tell you," Frank said breathlessly, pulling a bouquet of paintbrushes and a few tubes of water colors from the side of the car where he had hid them, "I got you some flowers." He held them out to Gerard, who rolled his eyes but then spotted the gift and gasped. "F-Frank," he said in amazement, as though paintbrushes tied up with a stray rubber band were the most romantic things on the planet, "That's really thoughtful, oh my God." Frank shrugged and set the item in his lap, making a heart with his hands and showcasing his "Hopeless Romantic" tattoo. 

 

Gerard chuckled and looked back at the road, using one hand to rub Frank's thigh. "Thank you so much, I can't show you how grateful I am since I'm driving, but that really is sweet."

 

Frank shrugged and smiled to himself, proud. "I have that affect on people, I know," he declared, as Gerard laughed. 

 

~

 

Something was up. 

 

Gerard was the one taking Frank on a date, not the other way around. So far, the two had gone to numerous record stores and had gone into some random hippie stores, all of which Frank purchased or gave him something special at. At the Urban Outfitters that they had wandered into, Frank had already set a vinyl on the record player, and the two had danced to the tragically clichè song. 

 

Frank looked up at Gerard and gestured to his vegan ice cream sundae, which was a slice of heaven in an overpriced ice cream store. "Thanks love," he said through a mouthful of ice cream. Gerard shrugged it off and continued to eat his ice cream in silence. He was going over the proposal speech in his mind, staring blankly at his ice cream, and didn't notice when Frank scooted his chair around the table to sit right next to him. Frank tapped Gerard's shoulder, startling him, and Gerard turned to look down at him. 

 

"Wanna see a magic trick?" Frank asked slyly, wiggling his eyebrows and smiling. Gerard laughed and nodded setting down his spoon and turning to face his boyfriend. Frank lifted his hand to Gerard's ear, and pretended to pull something out of it. Gerard rolled his eyes and chuckled quietly, beginning to turn away. But then, his eye caught the light of a little metal ring in Frank's opened hand. 

 

"Gerard, ever since we started that stupid-ass book club thing at the library, I've known that you were special. In the best of ways. You were and are everything I'm not: gorgeous, talented, gifted, intelligent, organized, and everything. You're my everything. And I can't let that slip through my fingers, ever. So–"

 

Gerard sat, gaping at the ring and furrowing his eyebrows. This concerned Frank, so he stuttered and broke off the speech. "I... What's wrong?" Frank stammered nervously, his heart dropping to his stomach. He had worked so hard in preparing this, and to be honest, he didn't account for the fact that Gerard could possibly reject the proposal. Gerard sat there speechless, trying to form words, but was unable to.

 

"Gee, talk to me baby, I-I'm sorry," Frank apologized quickly, tears collecting at the corners of his eyes, "I didn't mean to ask, I knew you weren't ready and..." About to stand up and leave of embarrassment, Frank gathered his keys and made to go. However, Gerard gathered his senses and pulled Frank back down, suddenly smiling and giggling. "F-Frank, I..." Gerard stammered, pulling a ring from his pocket and holding it up to Frank, who stared at it with wide and glossy eyes. He began to laugh unevenly, which turned into a giggling spell, which escalated into him laughing heartily and throwing himself at Gerard, smothering him with kisses and words of love and thanks and bliss and happiness.

 

"So, I guess no speech," Gerard said weakly, laughing. And Frank replied, "I would say yes anyways you motherfucker." 

 

There were only four other people in the parlor, and they all seemed oblivious to the proposal happening at the center of the room. However, that didn't matter, as the two lovers could care less what homophobic assholes thought. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THANKS FOR IDEA BELLA
> 
> MUCH FRIEND 
> 
> VERY LOVE


	27. Visiting Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i am so so so tired i am sorry if this is a mess

Gerard stared at Frank’s lip ring. He really had a thing for Frank’s lip ring that was undescribale. The cool metal pressed into Gerard’s lip when his was connected to Frank's was just a bit much for Gerard. Frank twirled a block of her around his finger. His needed to cut it. They had been laying on the bed just staring up at the ceiling, bouncing ideas for the wedding off of each other. They hadn’t been toooooo successful, but they were too lazy to watch a movie or listen to music or even leave the house. They hadn’t left the house in nearly six days. 

 

 

**FLASHBACK (FROM THIS MORNING)**

 

“Five days going strong, Frankie!” Gerard giggled and looked for something to cook that wasn’t disgusting or expired.

 

“Gerard, I was in the closet for sixteen years, I can be in a house for five days.” Gerard dropped the bag of flour he was holding (he was gonna cook pancakes) and walked into the bedroom and shut the door.

 

“Gerard don’t you have work today? And didn’t you have work the past four days?” Frank yelled down the hall. 

 

“I know right?”

 

“Gerard you’re gonna get fired.” 

 

“Bob doesn’t even show up most of the time, he won’t fire me, I’m the only one who isn’t ever high or drunk while working." 

 

**END FLASHBACK**

 

 

“How ‘bout a Star Wars theme?” Gerard proposed. Frank shook his head.

 

“Gerard I swear to god I will divorce you before we even marry.” 

 

They hadn’t been very successful with one theme, to say the least. Even though they had a lot in common, picking out themes for big events wasn’t one they could agree on. It was decided that Gerard would officially move in with Frank about a week after the wedding happened. When they both could afford it, they were gonna buy a small house in the neighborhood where Gerard worked. After a couple minutes, Gerard zoned out and didn’t notice Frank had started asking him a question.

 

“Gerard, Gee, you there?” Frank waved his hand in front of Gerard’s face. After a second or so, Gerard noticed and flinched.

 

“Ye-yeah, I’m here.” Gerard stuttered out. 

 

“I asked if you wanted to visit Alex. Your mom called me and said that it might be helpful, so you can start forgetting about it. I’ll be honest, I kind of wanna know why this whole storm started. If you don’t feel comfortable going, I’ll go see him.” Frank stated. Gerard’s eyes grew dark. 

 

“I don’t wanna see Alex I don’t wanna see Alex I don’t wanna see Alex I don’t wanna see Alex” Played over and over in Gerard’s mind. He knew deep down that if he saw Alex one last time he’d never have to see him ever again (they filed a restraining order against him anyway). Gerard stopped moving for an entire minute, his eyes fixed on that one crack on Frank’s ceiling that looked like one day it would cave down. His eyes fixated on it as he drowned out all sound.

 

“Gerard, it’s okay, Gerard,” Frank kissed Gerard’s forehead, "you don’t have to see him. I’ll go, or Lindsey will go, or none of us will go if you don’t want us to. I just want you to feel safe and be happy.” Frank whispered into Frank’s ear as he held Gerard close to him. Gerard didn’t reply, he sa

 

“We’re gonna be okay now. You’re getting better every day and it’s so amazing seeing your progress. If it’s still worrying you, Pete and Mikey are getting better too. Pete’s almost done with PT.” Frank whispered as he ran his fingers through Gerard’s hair. Gerard sat there mesmerized as he felt Frank’s warm had wrap around his middle once more. 

 

“You’re okay. Your gonna be okay. It’s all gonna be okay, I promise you that. I love you, you know that?” Frank noted. A couple of tears slid down Gerard’s cheek. Frank used his sleeve to wipe them away. Gerard threw him arms around Frank and laid his head on Frank’s shoulder. 

 

“I think I should see him.” Gerard whispered.

 

“Whatever makes you safe and happy, I am okay with.”

 

 

~~~

 

Gerard straightened up his shirt. He tugged around at his pants and tried to smooth them out. He laced up his sneakers, grabbed his phone, and was ready. He was wearing clothes that luckily passed the East Jersey State Prison laws. He took one last look in the mirror and adjusted his hair. He stared at himself for a minute, then shook it off. He felt his nerves acting up and he took a deep breath. He was gonna see Alex. 

 

Gerard walked into the hallway and found Frank waiting in the kitchen. Frank looked up from his phone and smiled at Gerard. 

 

“Babe, you ready?” Gerard nodded and Frank took the keys off the hook. He swung them around his finger and they made a jingling sound.

 

“Let’s go!” Frank said with a bit too much energy. They walked down the stairs and hopped into the car.

 

“So, Gerard, Pete dropped off a demo for a new Fall Out Boy song. Apparently he wrote it for Mikey, so I thought we’d check it out.” Frank popped the CD into the car and the opening notes started playing. It wasn’t a bad song in Gerard’s opinion, but they’ve had better. Gerard bobbed his head to the music as they drove. After driving for a bit, they were there. Frank rolled into a spot and parked the car.He leaned over the seat and connected his lips to Gerard’s. 

 

“You ready?” Frank asked. Gerard took one deep breath and nodded.

 

“I, I think I am.” Gerard swung open the door and sashayed up the parking lot. Even if he wasn’t confident, he was gonna fake it till he could make it. Frank walked behind him and debated wold-whistling. Maybe not the time, but later would be okay. Gerard opened the doors to the penitentiary and walked in. He took baby steps when he started entering the building and stayed close to Frank.

 

“H-hi, I’m here for Alex Gaskarth, I have a meeting time with him today.” Gerard quaked out. Gerard wasn’t a small person, but the policewoman running the front desk was enormous compared to him and Frank.

 

“Did you bring your forms and a valid ID?” Gerard pushed them towards her. She examined them and passed them back after stamping one of the forms with a big red stamp. Frank walked up and did the same. Frank smiled afterwards, she kept her sullen loo,.

 

"Sit here and when it’s time, we’ll call you up. It could be anywhere from twenty minutes to two hours, so get comfortable.” Frank said a quick ‘thank you’ and the two walked back to their seats. Gerard got a chance to look around the waiting room. The waiting room was a bit similar to a hospital. Gerard thought about his visit with Alex. It was gonna be in a private room with Frank and a security guard. Mikey was going to be meeting them there any minute. Pete didn’t feel comfortable showing up, so he stayed back to work on lyrics and shit like that.

 

Frank pulled out his phone and began to text Gerard. It was dead silent in the waiting room and he didn’t wanna make any noise.

 

**Frank:** How r u today?

 

**Gerard:** Pretty well, hella nervous, can you play a song for me when you get home?

 

**Frank:** Ofc, but only if u let us go w/ the color scheme I picked 4 the wedding

 

**Gerard:** But the blue you picked out is not ‘usssssssssss’

 

**Frank:** Fine, i’ll play u the song bc I love you

 

**Gerard:** I text so formally whereas you say ‘4’ and ‘u’

 

**Frank:** I’m eleven

 

 

Mikey finally walked into the waiting room and joined the couple. 

 

“What’s up everyone?” Mikey whispered to the group.

 

“Thinking about becoming a prostitute.” Gerard answered.

 

“Way, Gerard; Iero, Frank; Way, Michael. It’s your time.” The policewoman’s voice boomed in the echoey room. Frank smiled at her once again, but was unsuccessful. The three stood up and were escorted by another police-person. If Gerard thought the lady was huge, this guy was colossal. The four of them walked down a big hallway that lead to lots of rooms with glass windows. Finally, the policemen stopped at room O2306. He knocked on a door and another policeman opened it. He motioned them inside and sat back down at his seat.

 

The three walked into the room and looked around. Gerard noted that it was pretty big, and looked straight out of CSI-L.A. It had gray walls and a big table with lots of chairs. Alex was seated at the other side of the table flanked by one policeman on each side. He smiled at Gerard and Gerard felt around for Frank’s hand. Frank walked them over to the big gray table (that conveniently matched the walls and the floors) and sat them down. 

 

“Gerard, Frank, Michael. What brings you here today?” Alex asked deviously. Gerard went to answer, but his voice got caught in his throat. Mikey spoke up for him.

 

“We just wanted to know why you did everything. Why did you go for Gerard after all those years? Why did you go after me and Pete?” Mikey snapped at Alex. Alex didn’t seem the slightest bit affected at Mikey’s outburst, he actually chuckled a bit. Even the security guards tensed up a bit. 

 

“Ah, Michael. You ever heard of a soulmate? After that one night with Gerard, nobody felt as good as him. Nobody could top Gerard. I knew it, we were meant to be together. I was just following faith.” Gerard’s pupils shrunk in size and he shrunk in his chair. Frank stared right past Alex, and stared at the blank gray wall behind him. 

 

“Don’t. Call. Me. Michael.” Mikey fumed. 

 

“I went after you and Pete because you were messing up the picture. You didn’t pass along my message to Gerard. You told on me. You never liked me, so I didn’t need you in the picture anyway.” Alex spoke with no filter. He was already in jail, speaking the truth wouldn’t put him in for longer.

 

Frank spoke up this time. “Then why didn’t you go after me?” He inquired.

 

“My dear, believe me, it was in the works.” Alex cackled a bit. Gerard shut his eyes and blocked out all the sound. 

 

"Why did I agree to this? This isn’t helping my fear at all, it’s fueling it.” Gerard’s mind was running seventy miles per hour. It was a rollercoaster of emotions.

 

“Hey, Gerard, do you still know French?  _Je t'aimerai toujours_ , Gerard.” Alex winked. Gerard’s eyes darkened as he glared at Alex. 

 

Suddenly, Gerard outburst with all the pent up anger and sorrow and contrition he had been storing for months.

 

“JUST GET OUT OF MY FUCKING HEAD ALEX! I WILL NEVER LOVE YOU! CAN YOU GET THAT IN YOUR FUCKING HEAD? JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!” He screamed. Frank pulled him back and Mikey shushed him as Gerard felt tears forming in his eyes. “I feel a lot better.” He whispered to Mikey through his tears.

 

“Aaand I think it’s time to cut this short.” The policeman, who had ushered them in, pointed to the door and opened it. Gerard stood up and pushed his chair. It made a squeaky noise against the floors.

 

“Bye Gerard.” Alex chatted. Gerard could feel everyone’s eyes burning into the back of his body. He stormed down the hallway and slapped his pass on the receptionist’s desk once more. She stamped it and began to stamp the other men’s. They all exited the building and waited outside for a bit. There was a bench outside and the three sat on it. It was beginning to rain, but none of them cared.

 

“I’m proud, Gerard, that was brave of you.” Mikey started.

 

“Yeah, that took a lot an I’m proud.” Frank finished. Gerard gave them both a weak smile and stared at the sky.

 

“I’m glad it’s over. I feel like a weight was lifted off my back.” Gerard commented. Mikey nodded.

 

“I’ve gotta go home and make sure Pete isn’t wrecking Ma’s home.” Mikey gave Gerard a hug and ruffled his hair.

 

“Bye Mikes, love you!” Gerard yelled at Mikey walked to his car. He heard a faint ‘love ya!’ and began to walk to his own. 

 

~~~

 

“So, rate today. 1-10.” Frank asked as they both snuggled into bed.

 

“Hmm, maybe 6-7. Probably a 6.5.” Gerard answered.

 

“Better than yesterday.” Frank commented on. Gerard nodded and swung his arms around Frank. Gerard kissed Frank’s neck.

 

“I’m gonna get better, I really am.” He said out loud. Frank tackled Gerard and kissed him. This is where Gerard wanted to be, forever.


	28. A Band and a Blowjob Conversation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ENJOI MFS 
> 
> xoromanticizingchemicals

Frank stood in the doorframe with his hands on his hips, glowering at Gerard because it was one in the morning and he was sitting on the floor of the living room, sketching. 

 

"Gee," he croaked, causing Gerard to screech in surprise and turn back around. "God, Frank," Gerard said, trying to catch his breath, "What are you doing awake anyways?" Frank rubbed at his eyes and walked into the living room, settling down next to Gerard on the floor. "Because I heard you coughing," Frank explained, and Gerard silently cursed his sore throat. Instead of replying, he continued drawing. Since it was pretty dark, Frank's view of the drawing wasn't the best. By the view of the lamp, however, Frank was able to see that the drawing was of Mikey and Pete. Gerard was referencing a picture of the two from their wedding, which was taped to the corner of the coffee table. "That's a nice drawing, Gee," Frank admired, scooting closer and tracing the drawn Pete's jawline, "Captured beautifully." 

 

Gerard shrugged and stuck the pencil in his mouth, scanning over the sketch and fixing it here and there. He finished the actual outlines, but still needed to color it in. "I need my markers, Frankie," he said quietly, batting his eyes at his fiancé in hopes of convincing him to go retrieve the markers. Frank raised an eyebrow. "Yeah? Well, you also need sleep," he retorted, kissing Gerard's jaw. Gerard let out a quiet breath and turned to meet Frank's lips, kissing him deeper. This caused Frank to laugh, "G-Gee! It's early, no! We can't fuck right now..." Despite his growing erection (since Gerard was absentmindedly stroking him as well), he knew he would be exhausted if he didn't get back to sleep.

 

Frank kissed Gerard one last time, and then remembered something. "Gee? I have a show tomorrow... Or today, I mean. It's at some bar. And I want you to come," Frank said quietly, smiling hopefully. Gerard's eyes darkened, and he cast them down. "I... Frank, but..." he started, protesting. One look at Frank and he knew that he had just crushed him. "I mean, umm, of course I'll come," Gerard recovered, and Frank perked up. "Really?" Frank exclaimed, clapping happily. 

 

Gerard chuckled weakly as Frank pecked his cheek once more and stood up, skipping back to the bedroom. "Get to bed, Gee-Bear," Frank called, and Gerard smiled. 

 

What a hell of a day he was in for.

 

~

 

"Thank God you showed up," Gerard said to Lindsey as she stepped out a cigarette in front of the bar. She scoffed in disbelief. "Of course I would come, you idiot," she replied snappily, leading Gerard into the bar. The two were engulfed by a small group of very drunk, possible high, energetic people. The scent of alcohol was uncomfortably heavy, as was the aroma of body odor and smoke. Gerard's heart was already racing, but he willed it to calm down slightly.

 

This night was about Frank, not him. 

 

"Gee, chill," Lindsey said to him coolly, pulling Gerard over to the bar and ordering two beers. He nodded as an assurance to himself that he would make it through this night alive and well. Ray was still supposed to show up, as were Mikey and Pete. 

 

Lindsey hadn't talked to Gerard in some time, and felt the need to catch up. Casually, she leaned against the counter, holding her bottle up to her mouth and tilting it back a bit. "So, what's been happening?" she asked above the noise, downing a few mouthfuls of beer. Gerard shrugged and drank some of his own beverage. "Meh, nothing big. I visited Alex, and he told me that he would always love me. I freaked out, screamed, and got me, Mikey, and Frankie kicked out," he explained, drinking some more, "But other than that, nothing big. Proposed to Frank, I think I told you that. Spent forever in the house. Listened to Frankie play. It's been chill." He examined his engagement ring and smiled softly, glancing back at the front area of the bar in which the band would be playing. Lindsey nodded and felt an immense amount of pity for her best friend. He had been through so much shit lately, and she didn't do much to help out, she felt. 

 

"Ah, neat," she replied, "Same here. Discontinued the club, it got boring without you two." Gerard nearly spit out is drink. "D-Discontinued?" he asked, biting his bottom lip. He knew how much Lindsey had loved the club, and that was how he and Frank had met. Discontinued. "Yep," Lindsey said regrettably, but shrugged, "It'll be okay. I have better things to do anyways." Despite Lindsey's insistence on the ending of the Book Club being neither Frank's not Gerard's fault, he still wasn't fully convinced. 

 

Just then, Ray tapped Gerard's shoulder and waved a little, winking. "Surprise, stranger," Ray said, smiling and ordering a drink. Gerard grinned in return and turned to fully face him, laughing at his hair. "Your hair is outta control," Gerard commented, and Ray scoffed. "Shut up, Getard," Ray replied, and stomped away, forgetting his drink and returning for it. Gerard smiled and returned his attention to the stage, as the band was finally setting up. "Lynz, let's go!" Gerard cried, noticing Frank practicing a few chords. Dragging Lindsey along, Gerard weaved his way through the small crowd, finding his way at the front of the pack. Nothing and no one mattered at the moment besides Frank. 

 

"Just wait, my Frankie is gonna be so great," Gerard promised his friend, pulling Linsdey into an embrace. She chuckled and rolled her eyes. "You two are too deep in love for me to make remarks about you guys being stupid and love being a fairytale," she remarked, hugging Gerard back and finishing off her drink, "I need more beer. Be right back." Lindsey made her way back to the bar to order more, and Gerard glanced up at Frank, who beckoned him to draw nearer to the stage. Doing so, Gerard was smiling. Sincerely. He was actually _excited_. "Yes, my favorite short-sized human?" he asked humorously, and Frank faked laughter. "Ha. Ha. Very funny, asshat," he responded, and then sighed shakily. "Gee, I'm really nervous. I've played for you and Ray and the band and Mikey and Pete, but that's different. You're family. They're family. But this? These are complete strangers. They're watching, thinking, contemplating any possible way they can murder me. That's what's happening, I can't see it in their eyes."

 

Gerard's heart rate climbed a bit, but he grabbed Frank's hand and squeezed it hard. "Hey, don't talk like that," he consoled, kissing Frank's chin, "It'll be alright. I promise. So what if they're judging? Are they the ones getting out-of-this-world blowjobs from their awesome fiancées at the end of the day? I don't think so." Frank laughter lightly, and nodded. "Yeah, you're right. But you promise you'll blow me after?"

 

"I'll fuck you 'til you can walk if you want me to. Anything you want," Gerard whispered hotly, and Frank snickered. "Deal," he agreed, and someone called him back, "Gotta fly. Love you babe." With that, Frank was back and talking to some techs, and Gerard nodded in approval. He was honestly so proud of Frank that it was unbelievable. 

 

Lindsey appeared back at Gerard's side, with a beer in each hand. "Got one for you too," she offered, thrusting a beer into his hand. He took it gratefully and took off the cap, sipping from it while watching the band take their places. The lead singer of whatever this band was called grabbed hold of his microphone stand, clearing his throat into the microphone and causing the crowd to flinch in surprise. "Hello folks," the man, who was obviously a little drunk, drawled, "My name is Neil, and this is Pencey Prep. I'd like to welcome our newest member, well, I mean, a newer addition to the band. His name is Frank fucking Iero, and he's the lead for vocals and plays the guitar like a motherfucker." 

 

The crowd throws out some drunken comments, though Ray, Gerard, and Lindsey cheer the band on loudly. Mikey and Pete obviously didn't make it, Gerard realized, but could care less. Frank smiled at the group and waved, taking ahold of his own mic. "Thanks, Neil. I'm Frank, and all you need to know is that I love playing the guitar, and I'm hella gay. Gay for my soon-to-be husband right there in the front," Frank introduced himself, gesturing to Gerard with a lazy smile. The crowd giggled and shoved Gerard a bit, which made him blush madly. 

 

"Anyways, we're here for a good time and some music. Never played before at a place, a public place, I mean. So make it memorable would you please?" Frank continued, his voice silky and so odd that it fit the stage perfectly. Gerard whooped loudly, pumping a fist in the air and admiring the way Frank winked at him and ran a hand through his hair. After turning around briefly to check that everything was set up, Frank turned to face the crowd once more, saying, "First song's called 'The Secret Goldfish,' and I hope you all enjoy it." More cheering from the crowd erupted as the first chords of the song were played, and from there on out, the band was fucking rocking it. The whole group rocked the stage, especially Frank. 

 

Frank. Frank was a spectacle, and Gerard couldn't take his eyes off of him, amazed at his energy and talent. He was so invested in the performance, and it blew the whole bar away. Gerard and his friends were the loudest, cheering and screaming and crying out in surprise every time Frank screamed or an advanced riff was performed and perfected. Ray was the most impressed, though, nodding at the musical skill and advancement of the band. 

 

By the end of the performance, everyone in the room was covered in bruises and was sweaty, throats hoarse and eyes watering. It was loud, it was dirty, it was rough _{so sexual oh my god}_. Frank and his band smiled widely at the people, and he screamed into the mic, "Thank you, you assholes!" The crowd laughed again and pumped their fists as the band left the stage, and Gerard shot to the back of the bar in order to congratulate his lover and the band. 

 

"Frankie!" Gerard called, running up to Frank and embracing him on the spot. Frank laughed loudly and hugged him back, even though they both reeked of sweat. "Gee! Were we any good?" Frank asked, pulling back and pushing his soaked hair out of his face. Gerard giggled and nodded wildly. "Of course you were! Did you hear them? They were insane! They loved you!" he replied, hugging Frank again. The rest of Pencey Prep exited the stage, coming upon the cute scene and smiling. "Man, being gay must be fun," one of the people commented. Another nodded. "The best blowies, I bet. A guy knows how to handle a penis, better than most chicks I think." Another member said, "Definitely. I bet Gee gives the best, being a singer and all." 

 

Gerard laughed nervously and threw his arm around Frank's shoulders, shrugging. "Never too late to become a gay asshole like me," he said with a smile, and the band laughed as well. 

Despite being originally nervous as fuck, Gerard actually had a wonderful time, and couldn't wait until the next time Frank's band performed. 


	29. Wedding Preparations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> when i first started writing this fic, i hated writing makeout scenes and i thought they were super difficult
> 
> now i'm a total slut for them
> 
> ~
> 
> very sorry this was late, bit of a family emergency but it's all resolved, chapter 30 will be the last chapter guys :(

**Mom:** Hi Gerard, I’ll be by later on today to help you plan for the wedding, xx 

 

~

 

It was a good day for the couple. Bob was on vacation, so Gerard didn’t have to go to work, but it’s not like he would’ve gone anyway. He was getting paid for not showing up, and he prayed that Bob would never end up noticing. Bob was not the brightest tool in the shed. (But seriously, how was Gerard not fired?) So the two of them were catching up on Quantico and eating store-bought cookies in Frank’s living room. It was pretty hot that day, so they were both lounging on the couch clad in boxers. Eventually, they stopped on an episode and ate lunch. Frank went off to practice guitar, and Gerard went to his room.

 

That day, Gerard was turning over a new leaf. He was going to lock away his schedule for good. Over time, he realized that he didn’t need it anymore. Gradually, he had become a neater, more organized person who didn’t need to rely on a schedule anymore. In a way, the schedule was Gerard’s security blanket, and Gerard was deciding to give it up. It was a turning point, because since college, his schedule had been his constant companion. Whether that be the schedule helping him in situations, being a general comfort, or having some kind of control over his life, his schedule meant a lot to him. But, he didn’t need it any more. He was a changed man.

 

“Gerard, what are you doing?” Frank asked as Gerard was unlocking the cabinet in his bedside table. In the little cabinet, he kept his important documents, some childhood things, a couple of porn magazines, and a stash of ~$100, just in case of an emergency. He threw the schedule inside and shut the doors. 

 

“Locking up the ol’ schedule.” Gerard stated as he turned the key and locked it up. He patted the cabinet and stood up. Frank looked a bit confused, but carried on the conversation.

 

“I’m proud of you.” Frank said, not entirely knowing how to respond. Gerard beamed. 

 

“Thanks, wanna keep watching Quantico? It’s not like you need _that_ much practice for guitar, you’re fucking amazing.” Gerard assured. 

 

“Thank you, Gee. And of course, I’d never give up a chance to sit around n be lazy with you.” Gerard grabbed Frank’s hand, then went into the living room.

 

~

 

One thing Gerard liked to do was play with Frank’s lip ring. When they’re kissing, Gerard likes to tug on it, and run his tongue over the cool metal. Lip rings are fucking cool in general, but lip rings on Frank Iero are another fucking story. Gerard was just infatuated with Frank’s lip ring. It gave him an edgy mysterious vibe that Gerard couldn’t get over.

 

“Maybe you should get one too,” Frank said one night, after they came up from air after kissing, “you’d look pretty fucking hot.” He continued. Gerard shook his head and cringed a little bit.

 

“Nah, needles are scary as fuck.” Gerard responded as he pulled Frank back in for a kiss. Every kiss with Frank still sent sparks through Gerard’s heart and sent a chill down his spine. Every kiss felt just like the first one, bursting with energy and lust. Every kiss felt like the last one, neither wanting to let go, filled with cravings and promises.

 

“I bet you have a piercing kink, Gerard.” Frank joked with a smirk. Gerard laughed. 

 

“Wouldn’t a piercing kink mean I get turned on by getting piercings? The only kink I have a Frank Iero kink.” Gerard laughed as Frank lightly punched him. Gerard leaned in for yet another kiss, and drowned in Frank once more. Frank pulled away and whispered into Gerard’s ear.

 

“You sure you don’t have a Shrek kink.” Gerard cracked up as he swatted at Frank. Frank reached over to tickle Gerard. Gerard squealed as he jumped off the bed and ran through the hallway, trying to stay out of Frank’s grasp. Soon, Frank caught up to him and wrapped his arms around Gerard. Gerard giggled as he let Frank carry him bridal style back to bed. 

 

“Time for bed, sleeping beauty.” Frank tucked Gerard into bed and placed a light kiss on his forehead. Gerard smiled up at him. Frank wished he could’ve grabbed the camera, because Gerard looked adorable as hell.

 

“It’s time for your bedtime too, mister.” Gerard said as he pulled Frank on top of him. Frank was small, so it was pretty comfy. Frank reached over to turn off the light, and then they adjusted. 

 

“Perfect.” Gerard chimed as Frank snuggled up on his chest, finally finding a comfortable position. “Sleep well, Frankie.” He kissed the top of Frank’s head.

 

“I love you, Gerard.”

 

“I love you too."

 

~

 

One thing Frank knew about Gerard was that Gerard ran a blog. What Frank didn’t know about Gerard was that Gerard ran an NSFW blog. Gerard had briefly brought it up a couple of times throughout their relationship, but never mentioned the URL or any details whatsoever. Frank was a good boyfriend and never tried looking for it, but sometimes, he did get curious.

 

“Gerarddddd,” Frank whined, “what are you even doing on your laptop? It’s 4am!” Frank had been woken up by the bright light bursting from Gerard’s laptop and the tapping and kicking sounds coming from Gerard keyboard and mouse. Gerard’s pupils shrunk as he slammed the lid of it shut. Gerard had never showed Frank his blog and was never planning on it. He was worried Frank would think it was weird.

 

“I’m blogging, somewhat, I guess.” Gerard had a tumblr blog with 1200 followers. He wouldn’t really call it a porn blog, but it definitely was not SFW. He wasn’t big on sharing it, and only Lindsey actually knew about it.

 

“Can I ever see your blog?” Frank asked. Gerard froze, he pondered for a moment before replying quietly.

 

“I don’t think you’ll enjoy it.” Gerard mumbled as he hung his head, staring deeply at his hands. Frank inched closer to him, the bed dipped and squeezed. 

 

“Nonsense, I enjoy everything of yours.” Frank assured him. That was a lie. Gerard reached over and opened the laptop, quickly typing in his password. Once he got past his password, his most recent opened page popped up. It was his blog. There were plenty of naked people on his page, but it wasn’t porn in any way, it was art. It was a beautiful array of images of the human body. Models, artwork, drawings, all in different lighting, styles, designs, colors. Thousands of different people in their raw form. It was like an art exhibit.

 

“Why didn’t you wanna show me this? It’s a work of art, just like you.”

 

“I thought you’d think it was silly or weird.” Gerard confessed. 

 

“I like it. It’s very you.” Frank replied. Gerard smiled and let Frank awe at the rest of the page.

 

~

 

Gerard was not a procrastinator. He was not. But planning a wedding with Frank Iero certainly made him one. Frank was not cooperative when he knew the deadline wasn’t for a while. Instead of prepping for their wedding, Frank was sitting on the couch playing Grand Theft Auto.

 

“Frank, the wedding’s in less than six months and we have nothing planned.” Gerard mentioned. He mentioned it every day, yet Frank wanted to wait until the night before to start planning.

 

“Exactly, _six_ months, that means we have plenty of time.” Frank pointed out. Gerard rolled his eyes and got out his laptop.

 

“That’s actually not plenty of time, so I’ll begin myself then.” Gerard snapped. He stormed out of the living room leaving Frank to do what he wanted. Frank quickly paused his game and hurried to the bedroom.

 

“Gerard?” Frank poked his head around the door and saw Gerard aggressively typing on his laptop at the desk. “You okay?” He asked. Gerard didn’t turn around. 

 

“ _If I had my fucking schedule I could specifically make the plans for each person like Mom and Mikes and I could record everything and set dates to meet with florists and shit like that. Why’d I even lock away my schedule I’ll always need it.”_ Gerard thought to himself as he pulled out a blank notebook to record numbers and dates in.

 

“I’m just planning everything myself since you obviously don’t care. If you don’t wanna help, please let me make these calls in peace.” Gerard ranted. He picked up his phone and began typing a number he was currently reading off his screen. Frank sighed and walked over to where Gerard was sitting. He took the phone out of Gerard’s hand.

 

“Listen, I’m sorry for how I’ve been acting. I know you like to stay on top of things and I’ll try my best to help.” Frank confessed. “Just give me something to do. You can still pick out themes and everything. You’re the artist, you know how to pick themes.”

 

“But Frank, it’s not _my_ wedding, it’s _our_ wedding. You can help too. I’m sorry for snapping, I just wanna book everything sooner than later.” Gerard ran his hands through his hair as he spoke. Frank grabbed them and pulled him gently off the chair, pinning him to the wall. Frank pressed his body to Gerard’s. Gerard’s heart began to beat faster. Gerard stared into Frank’s eyes. 

 

“You need a break,” Frank whispered into Gerard’s ear, “we’ll start seriously booking everything after we calm down a little, I promise. Please, I can help.” Gerard nodded as Frank attached his mouth to Gerard’s neck, lightly sucking on it. Gerard moaned as his hands gripped Frank’s t-shirt. Frank pulled back and admired the red/blue marks forming on Gerard’s neck. Gerard lightly ran his fingers over them. He grabbed Frank’s neck and pulled him in for a kiss, lightly biting on Frank’s lip like he usually does. Frank began to pull off his own shirt and and asked Gerard if he could take off his. Then, the doorbell rang.

 

“Fuck, not now.” Gerard whispered to himself. 

 

“Are you expecting someone?” Frank asked. Gerard pulled on his shirt and tossed Frank his.

 

“My mother, I forgot she was supposed to come over and help call people with us for the wedding.” Gerard explained as the doorbell rang once again. He rushed through the hallway and opened it. Donna stood in the hallway, typing out a message on her phone. When Gerard opened the door, she enveloped him in a hug.

 

“Hiii Mom, come on inside, let me grab the landline and a notebook and we can all get started.” Donna pretended not to notice her son’s swollen lips, or newly formed hickeys on his neck. She also pretended not to notice that Frank had sex hair and equally swollen lips.

 

~

 

After three hours, they had booked a place to get married (a cute outdoor garden area), and a caterer. Donna was going to bring some plants on the big day. They booked a bunch of tables and chairs for the venue too. The afterparty would be at Donna’s place (not many people got invited to the afterparty ;) it was very exclusive). Gerard had finished all the invitations and was ready to mail them. Donna cooked dinner for the two, and was on her way.

 

“Bye Ma!” Gerard gave her a kiss and a hug. She smelled like cheap perfume and laundry detergent. 

 

“Bye Donna!” Frank hugged her and walked her to the door. Frank closed and locked it behind her. He turned back to Gerard with a smile.

 

“Finally, alone at last.” Frank gushed. Gerard jumped into Frank’s arms and swung his legs around him. Frank walked them both to the bedroom and dropped Gerard on the bed. Gerard fucking giggled as he unzipped Frank’s pants.

 

“I love you.” Gerard said, once more, just in case Frank forgot.

 

“I probably love you more."

 

~

 

Gerard woke up to pancakes, coffee and dozens of hickeys. Frank had matching ones too.

 

**Countdown to the Wedding: 182 Days**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> faith check wattpad lmao


	30. When The Wedding Bells Chime

_-Gerard, Donna, and Ray-_

 

"Gerard, come _on_ man, Frank's not gonna abandon you at the alter. You're paranoid," Ray consoled the groom, who was frantically tearing at his hair as his mother attempted to fix it up for him. However, Gerard was having none of Ray's shit. "I've read Great Expectations one too many times. I know what happens, Ray! He's gonna leave me up there, in front of everyone, because he doesn't actually love me!" he ranted, and Donna swatted his hands away from his hair, "Frank is probably just pretending, he just wanted a puppet and–"

 

Bob stalked into the room, his hands shoved awkwardly in his pockets. "So, big day," he said quietly as he approached Donna, Gerard, and Ray. Bob was definitely out of place, as he had tried too hard to appear fancy. His black suit was covered in lint and hair, his piercing holes gaping slightly, and his hair far too gelled back. However, Gerard invited him because without Bob and his relaxed, "I give zero fucks" schedule for work, he wouldn't have gotten to spend so much time with Frank. Speaking of Frank...

 

"Bob, Frank doesn't love me," Gerard whined as his mother combed back his mess of hair, which was a result of a restless night and excessive consumption of coffee. Donna rolled her eyes, and Ray scoffed, but Bob's eyes widened and his expression became alarmingly surprised. "He doesn't?" he asked loudly, and Ray slapped him. Bob used a string of choice words to express his pain as Ray dragged him out of the dressing room (Donna's master bathroom). 

 

Saddened by the encounter, Gerard began to cry, which alarmed Donna. Sure, Gerard had always been emotional, but right now? "Oh, Gee, baby, talk to me," Donna said soothingly, setting down her styling comb and the gel and walking around Gerard to face him. He placed his hands over his eyes, which were blotchy, and began to shake. "I just... I'm so worried, what if he actually doesn't like me and he's doing this because he feels bad about it? What if he's doing this because he's upset about the Alex thing and he wants to make sure no one else gets hurt because of my mistakes? What if he's doing it for money? Mom, why would I be so stupid as to fall in love with a guy who's barely four feet tall, and who I met at a book club of all places? I could be in a committed relationship with schedules, but no, it's Frank!" Gerard sobbed hysterically, sputtering as tears began to slip past his cupped hands. 

 

Donna clicked her tongue a few times and leaned in to hug her son, her eyes watering a bit. She understood wedding nerves, as she had been married before, but this level of anxiety was absurd to her. She also knew of Gerard's anxiety problems, but thought he had gotten over them. Maybe it wasn't as bad as he was making it out to be, but she was a mother, and her job was to console her child. 

 

"Gerard," she said seriously, pulling back and taking Gerard's hands from his eyes, "I wouldn't let you marry someone who was gonna use you, would I?" Gerard sniffled quietly, and Donna continued, "Trust me, I know Frank. I've known him longer than you have, and I love the boy to pieces. He's selfless, caring, sensitive at times, and above all, he genuinely cares about you. I know I'll give you shit for marrying a shortstack, but his heart compensates for his height."

 

"S-So does his dick," Gerard replied shakily, and Donna gasped and shoved him playfully. "Strictly no sin, Gee! You're getting married!" she exclaimed, and the two shared a brief moment of teary laughter. Finally, Gerard began to calm down. His nerves weren't so on edge afterwards, and he was willing to accept the fact that Frank actually loved him.

 

Donna wasn't the least bit disgusted that her eldest son just made a penis joke right in front of her.

 

~

 

- _Ray and Bob_ -

 

Ray shook his head fiercely at Bob, and whispered, "I can't believe you said that! Gee is already nervous as hell, but you made things worse!" Bob threw his hands up in surrender, apologizing profusely for his accidental asshole-comment. Ray rolled his eyes and shoved Bob away. "I get that you're an insensitive, unemotional bastard, but it's his wedding day. I don't care if sexuality creeps you out, but he invited you and you came. Now be nice and stop being an asshat, for Christ's sake," he scolded, and then stormed out of the closet _{me accepting my sexuality}_ , leaving Bob a stuttering, apologetic mess.

 

~ 

 

_-Frank, Mikey, and Pete-_

 

Frank paced back and forth in his new shoes, admiring their cleanliness in comparison to his old Converse. "Thanks for the shoes, Pete. You, unlike me and Gee, keep your shoes nice and clean," he observed, and Pete nodded. "Yeah, love my shoes. Those are lucky, okay? Don't fuck up at your wedding," he offered as encouragement, and Frank flipped him off. "Fuck you too, boo," Pete's reply came, and Mikey sighed loudly.

 

"I don't see why Gerard is taking, like, three hours to get ready. The guests are arriving, and he's not even here yet. It's not even that fancy," Mikey mumbled, and Pete placed a hand on his thigh. "Oh, baby, shh. I know you're agitated, but you're his brother. You're also Frank's best man, so be happy," he consoled, and Mikey's eyes lingered on Pete's hand. "As long as you can make it up to me later," Mikey said lowly, though Frank totally heard it, and Pete nodded. "I'll blow you, fuck you, whatever you want," he whispered with a smirk, and Mikey began kissing him roughly. 

 

Frank shrieked, as he had had enough, and squealed, "Ew, get a room!" Pete and Mikey kept on making out in order to piss him off. Giving up, Frank cried, "Ah, fuck it, I'm gonna go take a quick smoke." And he did. Frank left the room as quickly as possible, ignoring the ungodly noises his friends were making, and ran out of the small reception room to the great outdoors. 

 

After making a trip to his car for the cigarettes and a lighter, he lit a joint and took a drag, observing the small area in which he and Gerard were to be married. He was elated, in all honesty. The only family he had coming was his mother, as his father decided that this week would be ideal for a business trip to Russia. Though Frank was slightly pissed, he was still glad that his mother would be attending. He spotted her from afar, admiring her choice of clothing. He was always scolded for dark clothing, until his mother decided her yelling was no use at all. Frank was just a punk little shit. Frank also spotted a few of his friends, as well as the band that Gerard had chosen. One of Gerard's co-workers had agreed to playing, and though Gerard despised Brendon and his constant drama, it was them or Frank's band. However, Frank didn't have his band play, because he was kind of the lead singer. Frank's bandmates were sitting in the row behind Linda, as were a few of his friends. 

 

In half an hour, he would be married to the love of his life, and he honestly couldn't wait. 

 

~

 

_Time Skip: Wedding Vows_

 

Gerard's hands were sweater than they had been in years, and that's all he could focus on. They hadn't been that sweaty since dodgeball in fourth grade. Frank noticed the perspiration, but said nothing of it, and instead focused on trying to cheer Gerard up by rubbing his fingers carefully. A hand-massage, he called it. 

 

Their priest, who Frank wasn't even sure if the guy was certified, spewed vows and promises, which Frank wasn't paying attention to. The man looked like he was homeless, which messy hair and less-than-appropriate clothing for the occasion. All the while, Donna was an emotional wreck in her chair, crying and sputtering as the rest of the attendees remained quiet and smiling. Except for Linda, who was also wailing at the loss of her pure, "virgin" son. 

 

Finally, Gerard and Frank were able to place the rings on each other's fingers, and Ray, who stood behind Gerard, smiled widely for the first time in months. And Mikey also smiled, which was something he hadn't done in like twenty-six years, so Gerard appreciated the expression. When the big "I do" moment came, and there were, of course, no objections, Frank and Gerard were authorized to "kiss the groom," which they did gladly. Though it was a small kiss, it was sweet, and had the whole crowd cheering with delight. 

 

The band struck up once more, and Frank and Gerard left the front of the grassy area, walking down the aisle arm-in-arm. 

 

The two were finally married, with no intervention of Alex or any other quick fucks from high school or college.

 

~

 

There were very few people at the after party, which Gerard was glad of. He wanted only his close friends to attend, for several reasons. For starters, the Ways were practically broke. They didn't have enough money to buy food and shit for the entire group that attended the wedding. Secondly, the after party was a sensitive subject for Gerard. He had a speech to give, and he didn't want everyone to hear it. 

 

As he approached the head of the table, a nervous wreck, he glanced at Frank, who was already looking at him. The two exchanged smiles, which encouraged Gerard a bit, and he cleared his throat to be heard above Pete, Mikey, Ray, Donna, Linda, and Lindsey. "Everyone, uh, I have a few words I wanna say," he spoke calmly, and Lindsey yelled, "Oh God, a boring, sappy love speech!" 

 

The group laughed lightly, and Gerard flipped her off before saying, "I just want to say how much I love Frank. I'm a cliché twat, but let me talk about how we met. I used to be a schedule whore, with barely any free time and a love for Grey's Anatomy. I had no friends, and the only friends I had, I ignored. Sorry Ray. My bad, Lynz. Anyways, I met Frank at Book Club, which Lindsey started. I had Lindsey do some stalking for me, and she did a good job. I found out his name and how often he came to the library. Well, I found his number and name in a book, which was called _How Many Letters Are In Goodbye_. I'll be honest, I totally flipped out. I had his phone number. I could contact him. We went to Starbucks after I grew a pair and texted him, and come to find out, he and Mikes were childhood friends. As soon as Frank came into my life, things got weird. What with Alex and all, it was fucked up. But he was there through it all, from wisdom teeth to early morning sketch sessions. I'm no longer addicted to schedules. We both wanted to propose to each other, and we kinda did. It was funny, really. And now, I can actually say that I'm married to Frank Iero... I mean, Frank Way. I'm married to someone I love, and I can honestly say, I don't really know how many letters are in goodbye, as it's a word I never wanna say to him." 

 

After everyone squealed and clapped and cheered, Frank being the emotional mess he was jumped up and threw himself into Gerard's arms. "God, I love you," Frank whispered, crying a little as he said the words.

 

Gerard was the happiest he had been in years.

 

~

 

 _Time Stamp: 3 Weeks Later_  

 

Lindsey had decided to start Book Club back up again, which Gerard and Frank were grateful for. It gave them something to do together with Lindsey, as she became less and less relevant in Gerard's life, which was something he felt very guilty for. However, Thursdays were once again a joy, as an hour each week was spent as a group, with other random people, reading and discussing books. 

 

"This one seems interesting enough," Gerard commented to Frank, holding up a copy of the new text the group was reading. It was one of the books many college students in the area were required to read for school, titled  _Animal Farm_ , which Gerard had heard was very deep and philosophical. 

 

Frank nodded, planting a kiss on Gerard's cheek as they waited for the other members of Book Club to arrive. They made a habit of coming to the library often, as the place had sentimental value for them both. Had the library not been here, Gerard probably would've never met Frank, let alone begun dating him or get married to him. 

 

"I'm glad that you're no longer a slut for schedules and time management and creepy shows and lame books," Frank whispered randomly, grabbing Gerard's hand and squeezing it. Gerard laughed loudly, disturbing the nearby people. He didn't even care. "Yeah, I'm not." Frank then said, "I bet you had a schedule kink."

 

His husband scoffed in disbelief, replying, "Nah, the only kink I have is a Frankie kink. No Alex kink, no book kink, no schedule fetish. Just a you kink." 

 

And if kinks were a normal topic of conversation amongst the two, who knew what would be classified as fucked up. Because honestly, the two were hopeless romantics with huge kinks for each other, and no creepy stalker or crunched blocks of time could ever do them part. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AND THAT
> 
> IS 
> 
> THE 
> 
> END!
> 
> Thank you all so much for sticking with this fic, as long as it is! OVER 1K VIEWS! Bella and I are extremely happy with the way it turned out, even if there are tons of spelling errors and shit. But I'm glad that you all are reading it, and Bella and I will definitely be collaborating in the near future. 
> 
> Thanks again, lovely people of the Internet. Stay tuned for more fucked up fics from the two of us!
> 
> xoromanticizingchemicals 
> 
> ps. don't be afraid to leave comments or kudos! they're greatly appreciated


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